The Expendable One
by WildClover27
Summary: This is loosely based on a true story. What happens when the inevitable happens? I had to replace Chapter 4 because someone kindly pointed a continuity error. A large one. Enjoy. As Lt. Garrison would say: "Nobody's perfect."
1. Chapter 1

49\. The Expendable One

Chapter 1

The sound of jackboots running on the marble floor grew louder. Actor and Garrison, both in civilian clothes, headed for the window at the end of the hall. When Garrison paused, the Italian gave him a shove forward.

"Go!" he urged in a low voice. "I will hold them off until you get clear."

"They'll kill you," said Garrison. "Come on!"

"Go!" Actor was watching the corner of the hall now, gun drawn. "You have the intel. Go!"

Garrison did not like it, but knew Actor was right. He raced to the window and opened it, climbing partway out. Again he paused and looked back. The first of the soldiers rounded the corner to be taken out by Actor's gun. More kept coming. Garrison fired off a couple shots around the con man.

"Go!" yelled Actor, just before being hit and spinning around to fall to the floor.

Garrison flung himself out of the window and ran through the darkness. Shots were fired in his direction but he was able to make it to the woods before the lights came on to illuminate him. Craig ran through the trees; brush and branches tearing at his clothes. He burst out of the woods and dove into the front seat of the waiting car.

"Drive!" he shouted at Chief.

The Indian shoved the car into gear and spun tires leaving.

"Wot about Actor?" asked Goniff, pulling the back door closed.

"He's not coming," was all Garrison could say.

Casino and Goniff exchanged worried looks in the back seat. Was the con man dead?

"Safe house?" asked Chief.

There was a moment's pause before Garrison answered. "Yes."

Craig tried to remember the last thing he had seen. Actor had spun around and hit the floor. His tan shirt had been heavily stained red. Was he dead? God, he couldn't be. Captured was a certainty.

"What happened?" demanded Casino.

"We got caught," said Garrison, the vagueness of his voice showing he was having trouble dealing with what had happened. "Actor tried to hold them off. I was half out the window when he was hit. He went down."

"But he's alive?" asked the safecracker.

"I don't know," replied Craig. There was another slight pause. "I just don't know."

"We gotta go back for him!" exclaimed Casino with certainty.

"We need to find out where he is," said Garrison, pulling himself together. "They won't leave him there. They'll take him somewhere. A hospital most likely. We'll have to get the resistance to find out where he is first."

"Then wot?" Goniff found his voice.

"Then we case it and we get him out," said Garrison.

"What about the sub, Warden?" asked Chief.

"It'll come back again tomorrow night," replied Craig. "That gives us twenty-four hours to find him and get him out."

GGG

Actor was roughly rolled onto his back, the pain in his chest from the gunshot wound almost enough to make him pass out. Two soldiers flanked him, schmeissers aimed at him. A Leutnant walked up and looked down at him dispassionately before pointing a Luger at his forehead. Actor looked into the round bore of the gun barrel and knew he was going to die. The only consolation was Garrison had gotten away. He waited for the flash that would end his life.

" _Nein!"_

A colonel walked up and motioned the man to put the gun away. The expression on the leutnant's face showed how unhappy he was with that, but did as ordered.

The colonel looked down at Actor with curiosity. " _Sprechen Sie Deutsch?"_

Trusting instinct, Actor replied, " _Ja."_ His voice was tight with pain.

The colonel pondered the supine man for a moment. "Get an ambulance," he said to the Leutnant. "He may be of some use to us."

Based on his pain and difficulty breathing, Actor figured he would not last long enough to be interrogated. Actor was loaded on a stretcher in the back of an ambulance with two attendants; both armed. The con man tried to keep the pain at bay, but it was too difficult bouncing over rough roads and he moved in and out of consciousness. Only able to stare at the ceiling, he could not tell where they were going. The drive became immeasurably long, leading Actor to believe they had left the city. So where were they going? Was he to bleed to death?

GGG

Back at the safe house, Garrison informed Emilie of what had happened and asked for his help. The Frenchman immediately went out and contacted his people. From then it was a long wait for Garrison and his men. It was not a quiet wait. For someone who teased the confidence man and slugged him on occasion, Casino was the most vocal about trying to rescue Actor. They waited through the rest of the night and most of the next day.

"There is no sign of him, Lieutenant," said Emilie. "He has not been taken to a hospital or Gestapo headquarters. They probably shot him as a spy and dumped the body somewhere outside the city."

Garrison took a breath and let it out. No, not Actor. Of all of them, he was the one with the best chance of surviving. Craig would not believe the con man was dead.

"Warden?" Chief was the first to speak.

"Yeah, Warden, what are we gonna do?" demanded Casino.

"We can't just leave 'im now, can we?" asked Goniff.

Garrison looked around at the worried faces of his men. He did not want to leave, but the microfilm needed to get back to G-2. The military in him had to win over the emotional part of him.

"We go back to England with the intel. Then we come back." He turned to Emilie. "Will you keep looking for him?"

"Yes," said the resistance man, "but I don't have much hope."

"That's it?" demanded Casino. "Yer just gonna leave him? He saved your life. You're just gonna walk away?"

Garrison hardened himself. "We are going back to England. We can't help Actor if we don't know where he is."

GGGGG

Garrison handed the microfilm to Col. Yates. The colonel did not seem as interested in the material as the lieutenant thought he should be.

"We left a man behind," said Garrison. "It's Actor, our confidence man. Request permission to return and bring him out, Sir."

"Permission denied," said Yates, sitting down in his chair and flipping through some papers on his desk.

"Sir, he is a valuable member of my team." Garrison could not get any more out.

Yates looked up sharply. "I said permission denied. You and your men are expendable. Another confidence man will be assigned to you."

"Sir," persisted Garrison, trying to control his anger. "I do not want another confidence man. I have the best in the business and I want to go get him."

"Garrison," said Yates, rising from his chair and glaring at the lieutenant. "I don't care what you want. The man is expendable. You'll get another confidence man, unless, of course, you would rather disband and the remainder of your men be returned to the prisons they should never have been taken from. Am I making myself clear, Lieutenant?"

"Perfectly, Sir," said Craig.

"Then you are dismissed."

"Thank you, Sir," said Garrison. For nothing, he thought.

Craig turned and left the office, motioning his men to follow from the anteroom. There were looks of question on the men's faces. This was not the place to discuss it. Garrison waited until they were outside and in the Packard.

"All right," said Casino harshly. "We going back for Actor?"

"No," said Garrison, starting the car. "Permission denied. Actor is expendable to Col. Yates. He's going to provide us with a new con man."

"Bloody 'ell, Warden? That ain't flamin' right!"

"Warden, you can't let him get away with that!" said Chief.

"Oh, I'm not done yet, by any means," said Garrison.

He put the car in gear and drove the long distance home from London. The air was hostile, but the complaining was not all aimed at him. Garrison wasn't looking forward to the next bit of business, telling his sister her friend and partner was not coming back. He got a small reprieve as Terry wasn't at the mansion when they arrived.

Garrison went in his office and shut the door, locking it. He immediately picked up the telephone and started making calls. Major Richards said he would try to help and see what he could find out. Gen. Abrams sounded sympathetic, but would not override Col. Yates. Craig placed a few more phone calls and called in some favors throughout the Army.

Terry came in the front door and looked at the men in the common room. They were watching her too. She noticed Actor wasn't there, but Craig's door was shut so she figured the con man was in with her brother.

"You guys are late," she remarked. "Anybody hurt?"

"Ask your brother," snapped Casino.

That put the girl on alert. "Where's Actor?'

"He aint' here," said Chief.

"Where is he?" asked Terry worriedly.

Garrison's door opened. "Terry, in my office."

"Where's Actor?" she demanded.

"In my office!"

"Craig . . ."

"Now!"

Terry stormed past her brother, worry now etched on her face. When Garrison closed the door, she rounded on him.

"What happened? Where is Actor?"

"He was shot covering my back," said Craig, going behind his desk and taking a seat.

"How bad?"

"I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know? Where is he?"

"We don't know that either," said Garrison. "He was taken somewhere. We couldn't find where."

"You left him?" asked his sister is disbelief. "What happened to nobody gets left behind?"

Craig took a cigarette from the pack in his pocket and lit it, blowing smoke away to give himself time to gather himself before he answered. "Resistance could not locate him. He wasn't in any hospitals or German headquarters. They took him somewhere, but we don't know where."

"Well, we're going back and getting him," said Terry. "When do we leave?"

"We're not going back," said Garrison with resignation. "He's been listed as expendable."

"By who?" demanded the girl.

"Col. Yates." Said Craig. "We were told that from the beginning. He's just playing it by the book."

"Craig William Garrison, don't you dare defend that piece of horse manure!"

Garrison shook his head. "I'm working on finding where Actor was taken. If we can find out where he is located, we'll do something about it."

"Terrific," said Terry. "So he's probably getting interrogated somewhere and nobody can help him?"

"Not right now," said Craig. "Resistance is looking for him. Major Richards is trying to see what he can find out. And I have other people working on it."

Terry seemed to sink into herself. "You think he's dead?" she had to ask.

"It's a strong possibility," said Garrison, wishing it wasn't true.

Terry let that digest. No tears were forthcoming, but she was obviously devastated. Her face hardened.

"Metz?" she asked.

Garrison nodded. He watched her turn, stride out of his door and slam out of the front door. He rose and slowly walked to his door. Chief was watching out the window. Goniff and Casino watched the lieutenant. The roar of the MG's race engine penetrated to them.

"Where's she goin', Warden?" asked Goniff.

"I don't know, but I hope she has better luck than I'm having."

Garrison went back in his office and locked the door. He had another phone call to make. Christine had connections in SOE, Free French, and probably some people in OSS. He didn't know who Terry had connections with, but right now he wasn't above using the girls to locate Actor.

GGGGG

Days passed without any news. It was as if the confidence man had disappeared completely. Garrison was afraid the man was indeed dead, but like his sister, he would not give up hope. With Actor's skills, he had the strongest chance of getting through alive of any of them.

On the fourth day, Chief straightened at his window perch and called for Garrison. Craig came to his door and the others also turned their attention to the Indian.

"MP prisoner truck comin'," said Chief.

"They comin' for us?" asked Casino.

"Not that I've been told," said Garrison. "Maybe the replacement. Any other vehicles?" He was worried the army would surround the place and take the men. Col. Yates could not be trusted.

Casino and Goniff rose to their feet with a quick look at Garrison. The officer nodded. If it looked bad, he had no qualms now about letting the men 'scarper' as Goniff put it. Chief backed behind the curtain and watched.

"They got some guy in shackles," said the Indian. "Two guards and a driver." After a moment, he added, "They're comin' up the steps."

The front door was opened by an armed guard who entered, followed by a blond man in chains and another armed guard with a duffle bag. The three stood just inside the door. The bag was dropped on the floor.

"Lt. Garrison?" asked the first guard.

"Yes," replied Garrison. "What is this, Sergeant?"

The man stepped forward, pulling an envelope from the inside of his jacket and holding it out to the lieutenant. Craig took the envelope and opened it. He kept one eye on the shackled man. Quickly reading the paper, he suppressed a sigh. Taking a pen from his uniform pocket, Garrison signed the bottom of the paper and handed it back to the guard.

"He's all yours, Sir." The guard saluted.

Garrison gave a salute in return and watched the shackles being removed from the prisoner. The other guard saluted and the two army men left.

The blond kept a noncommittal face, but took a careful inventory of the men in the room. His attention finally focused on the officer.

"I'm Lt. Craig Garrison. This is Casino, Goniff, and the one in the window is Chief."

"John Carter," said the blond amicably enough. "I go by Carter."

"Con man?" asked Chief.

"Was until I ended up in stir," he said. He turned back to Garrison. "So I understand I'll be working with your group. The duration and 6 months."

There was a snort from Casino. "Yeah, unless you get killed or left to the Krauts."

"That's enough, Casino," warned Garrison.

"Just tellin' him the truth, Warden."

"Warden?" asked the blond with a hint of a smile.

"We're not exactly regular army here," said Craig. "Come into my office." He turned to his men. "Casino, track down Terry and get her here."

"Yeah, right, Warden. This oughta be fun."

Garrison escorted Carter into his office and shut the door, leaving the three cons to exchange looks. Somehow the arrival of a replacement made it sink home Actor was not coming back. Casino went to the phone and dialed the number to the Fox.

"Blue Fox." Terry answered.

"Hey, you need to come here now. Warden wants you," said Casino.

"Why? What's happened?" She sounded concerned.

"It ain't Beautiful," said the safecracker. "I'll let the Warden tell you."

"Casino . . ."

He hung up without answering.

Twenty minutes later, Terry walked in. She shot a frustrated look at Casino. He just nodded to the closed door of Garrison's office. The other two men kept silent. This did not bode well. Without knocking, the girl walked into her brother's office and shut the door behind her.

Garrison looked up at her entrance; saw her take in the other occupant of the room and stop, eyes wary. Carter looked at her expectantly.

"This is my sister, Teresa Garrison. She goes by Terry. Terry, this is John Carter. He goes by Carter. He's our new confidence man."

Terry's eyes jerked to her brother.

"A pleasure," said Carter.

Terry looked back at him and said nothing.

Garrison addressed Carter. "Terry works cons with us as needed."

"Excuse me," said Carter. "You said sister?" He looked back at the closed faced girl. "You're army?"

"Independent contractor," said Terry, offering nothing more.

This wasn't going well, but not as badly as Garrison had been afraid of. "Terry, you'll be working with Carter now. Can you do that?"

The girl's eyes swiveled to his and shot daggers at him. Her voice was steely. "I was trained by the very best," she said. "I can do it." She glared at Craig. "If you will excuse me, I was in the middle of something at my other place of employment." She turned to go.

"Kit will have to handle it," said Garrison. "I need you here."

For a minute he thought she was going to refuse. Her eyes dripped icicles.

"Fine."

Terry turned on her heels and strode out of the office.

"She was partnered pretty tight with you previous confidence man?" asked Carter.

"Yes. She's not usually that inhospitable."

"Understandable under the circumstances." Carter gave a patent smile.

It was going to be a long war, thought both men.


	2. Chapter 2

The Expendable One

Chapter 2

The next few days were tense ones in the Mansion. Terry was less prickly, but by no means her usual friendly self. The men watched her. She and Carter talked, trying to get to know each other's cons. Both were professional about it, but the girl could not, or would not let him get close. There was no touching and most certainly none of the kissing they were used to seeing with her and Actor.

Still, the men watched. They had not seen Terry crying or any signs she had, but something in her had left with Actor. Goniff was the one who saw the look on her face when she came out of the dining room and, for the first time, spotted Carter sitting in Actor's chair. The girl did an abrupt about face and went back into the kitchen.

Goniff left his cards on the table and strolled into the kitchen. Terry was standing at table, leaning on stiff arms on the edge, her cheeks sucked in, staring at nothing. The Cockney did not say anything, but moved around the kitchen, getting the fixings for a pot of tea. He had to nudge her out of the way so he could put water in the kettle and warm two cups under the hot water. When he moved away, she took up her stance, not looking at him. They stayed like that until the tea was done and Goniff had poured two cups, adding precious sugar to both.

"You have time before you have to make supper," said the pickpocket, "sit down and have a cuppa with me."

For a moment he thought she would not respond, but she turned and sat at the end of the table, next to him, taking the cup he slid towards her. She looked at the dark liquid before taking a sip.

"Did I get it right for you, Love?"

"Of course you did," said Terry was the beginning of a sad smile.

Goniff took another sip of his. "Me mum al'ays said a good cuppa can make things look better."

Terry raised an eyebrow at him.

He shrugged. "I don't think it's going tuh make this better. But it can't make it worse, now can it?"

Terry finally looked at him with a smile. "Nothing is going to make this better, Mate," she said. "Except maybe Actor showing up on the doorstep as though nothing happened."

Goniff wasn't going to take that hope away from her. "Well, until that 'appens, we'll 'ave to make do with wot we 'ave. An' wot we 'ave is Carter." He took another sip. "'E don't see like a bad bloke."

"No," said Terry. "The problem is me."

"Well, that's understandable considering 'ow close you and Actor were, with conning an' all."

"How are you guys getting along with him?" asked Terry, realizing she hadn't noticed.

Goniff shrugged. "'E don't offer much, but when we do talk to 'im, he's friendly enough."

"At least Casino hasn't belted him yet," said Terry. "He's a con man. He doesn't have Actor's flair, but he seems good in his own way."

"Can you work with 'im?" asked Goniff seriously.

Terry nodded. "If I can work with that moron of Randy's, I can work with Carter."

Goniff had the girl talking and he intended to keep her talking. "So wot languages does he speak?"

"French, German, Spanish" said Terry.

"Italian?"

"No," said the girl. "And that's going to be a problem. He knows a few words, but it sounds like Mexican coming out of him instead of Italian. Casino speaks more than he does." She frowned. "You guys go to Italy, I'll have to go with you."

"He said he worked the west in the States," offered Goniff.

"Army got him out of San Quentin. He said he worked Los Angeles, San Francisco, and mostly Vegas."

Goniff watched the wheels turning in the young woman's head. "Must be 'ard for 'im too. Gettin' thrown in with our lot an' all."

"I don't guess any of us have been too friendly towards him," admitted Terry.

Goniff put on his innocent face. "You 'ave to work the closest with 'im."

Terry looked at him with a tiny smile. "You telling me I need to make the first move here?"

Goniff smiled. "Might make it easier, Love."

Terry gave a quiet chuckle. "You have a touch of the con yourself, Mate."

The Cockney shrugged with a wider smile. "I've been watchin' two o' the best, 'aven't I, Love?"

Terry drained the last of her tea and grinned. "Okay, Mate, you win. Let's go see what we can do."

They both pushed away from the table and stood. Goniff held his arms out and Terry moved into a hug.

"Don't make me cry," she said.

"You won't," said Goniff knowingly. "At least not around us." He picked up the cups and put them in the sink. "Come on, Love."

They walked out to the common room. Terry peeled away from Goniff and went in Craig's office. He looked up from his desk as she went to the wall safe, opened it and took some money out.

"You got any more of those Italian books you gave the guys?"

"Yes," said Garrison, wondering what she was up to.

"Give one to Carter. His Italian is pretty non-existent. And give yourself one too. We're going to have Italian lessons."

"All of us?" asked Craig dubiously.

"All of us," said Terry.

"Actor tried and he didn't get anywhere with them."

"I'm not Actor."

Garrison was still curious. "What do you need money for?"

"Poker," said Terry.

She turned and walked out the door. Craig got up and went to the door to watch. He wasn't sure what his sister was up to now, but she seemed to have a purpose in mind. The girl went over to the table and swept all of Casino's cards together, disrupting his solitaire game to his loud objection.

She looked at Carter. "You have money?"

"How much and for what?" asked the blond man curiously.

"What's your game? Five Card Stud?" she asked.

"That'll do," said the man. "I don't have much money."

"I'll spot you," said the girl. She turned her attention to Casino. "Deal 'em, Babe. Let's see what he knows."

Now Casino grinned. Taking the new man was going to be a pleasure. Of course that meant he would be taking Terry too, but it was her call. The girl pulled out a chair and sat, watching Carter approach and take a chair.

"Dollar ante, no limit," said Terry.

Casino's grin got wider. This was going to be sweet. He didn't see Garrison lean against the door jamb, his paperwork forgotten. Goniff stood behind Terry and Chief left his window to stand where he could see the game.

The cards were shuffled, dealt, and the game began. Carter did have a poker face that beat Casino's. Terry played it straight, but watched the other two men. Casino immediately started cheating. It didn't take long for Carter to begin. As with the safecracker, the con man's moves were so subtle Goniff and Chief could not see what was happening. Garrison left the doorway and strolled over behind his sister. After the fifth hand she lost, she folded, but stayed in her seat, watching. The pot moved back and forth across the table.

At the end of the second hour, with fairly equal stacks of money in front of the two men, Garrison called it quits.

"Okay," the lieutenant said. "We get the point." He looked at Carter. "Have you ever played the Riviera?"

Carter shook his head. "No, mostly Las Vegas and private games in Nevada and California."

Garrison laid a hand on his sister's shoulder. "We'll have to teach him how to work Nice, Cannes and Monte Carlo."

"I'm not stupid," said Carter without heat.

"No," said Terry. "We see that. But you're out of your element. This is Europe."

"It's still run by the mob," said Carter.

"Yeah," said Casino. "I've been to Vegas and the Riviera. Cannes was a heck of a lot classier." He turned to Terry. "Hey, Babe, you shoulda been there with us. Well, maybe not. There probably woulda been a cat fight between you and the Duchess."

"Oh, I doubt it," said Terry. "From what I've heard about that caper, I would probably have been laughing my tail off at the three of you chasing her."

"Three?" asked Carter.

"I sat that one out in an English hospital," said Chief.

Terry pushed her chair back and got up. "Okay, guys, time to start cooking."

GGG

That evening, Terry drove in to Brandonshire to see if there was any news on Actor at the Fox. She did not want to call in front of her brother and the men. As far as she knew, Actor was the only one aware of what was going on in the basement. When she returned later that night, there was a light still on under Garrison's door. She tapped on it and walked in.

Craig looked up at her. The expression on her face told him she had no luck with whatever contacts she had. He motioned her to have a seat and tossed a pack of cigarettes to her. She watched him in worriedly as she took one out and lit it with the lighter he tossed to her next. Taking a deep breath of smoke and slowly blowing it out, she leaned forward and placed the pack and lighter on the desk.

"What?" she asked. "You find him?"

"No," said Craig, "but I got some interesting information from Major Richards."

"What kind of information?" asked the girl.

"Seems people have been going missing," said Garrison. "Operatives are captured. They just disappear. No bodies, no hospitals, no local prisons or jails. And they don't show up again."

Terry digested that. "Common denominator?"

Craig nodded. "When captured they aren't in German uniforms. They're dressed as civilians, like Actor and I were. They are highly intelligent people. Theory is they are stashed someplace deep inside Germany."

"For what reason?" Terry asked.

"No one knows. Nobody has ever come out to tell about it."

"And nobody knows where they are."

"No." Garrison took some puffs on his cigarette. "It means there is hope that Actor wasn't killed outright."

It didn't give Terry much hope to grab onto. "Doesn't mean he didn't die of his injuries, or was killed somewhere else."

"True."

"So what do we do?" asked the girl.

"Nothing much we can do," admitted Garrison. "We can't cover all of Germany. And there aren't enough resistance bands behind German lines."

"So we just leave him?" asked Terry in disbelief.

Craig gave her a resigned look. "There's nothing else we can do. If he is alive, he's going to have to get himself out."

"That's going to take a heck of a big con," said the girl.

"He's a heck of a good confidence man." Garrison grinned with a sureness he did not feel.

GGGGG

The heck of a good confidence man wasn't feeling too optimistic either. Going in and out of consciousness in the back of the ambulance, he did not know how long they had traveled nor where they were. He had been unloaded at the back of a hospital and placed in a room, shackled to the metal framed bed. An armed guard was with him all the time.

It was dark when they arrived. He was taken to surgery and lost further track of time. When he groggily awakened again, he was back in the same room, shackled to the same bed, with a different guard. The blackout drapes had been pulled back and he could see dim light coming through the crisscrossed wires in the frosted glass windows. His chest felt like it had a knife in it. Breathing hurt. Staying awake was too much trouble so he allowed himself to sink back into the darkness of unconsciousness.

Over the next few days, Actor came awake more frequently and for longer periods of time. The guards changed, but the bed stayed the same, as did the shackles around wrists and ankles. He became aware of tubes. One was in his nose, gently blowing oxygen in to help aerate his lungs. A tube was in his left lower chest. That hurt the most, especially when a white coated doctor came in and changed the dressing around it. The third tube went up into his bladder, negating the need to take care of that bodily function. Like any man, he hated catheters.

The only language he heard was German. For now, Actor refused to speak, only listen. Nothing was said to indicate where he was besides presumably somewhere in Germany. Nothing was said to explain why he had not been killed outright or why they were doing so much to keep him alive. It seemed like a lot of trouble to go to if all they wanted was to interrogate him for information he had no intention of giving to them.

What saddened him the most was the knowledge no one would be coming to rescue him. By now the Warden would have gone back to England with the microfilm. If the Army even allowed them to return to look for him, how would they find him? Even he did not know where he was. Finally he asked the guard.

" _Wo sind ich?"_ came out in a croak that did not sound like his own voice and scratched his already raw throat.

The guard must have been instructed to anticipate this question and not answer.

" _Wie ist Ihr Name?"_ He tried again in a friendly tone.

Still no response, other than a derisive glare. Actor gave up. He was not interested in knowing the name of his captor anyway.

GGGGG

The down time came to an end. Garrison and his men were sent on their first mission with the new confidence man. Terry's presence was not required, which was a blessing to her. She spent the days making calls to anyone she could think of and those already involved in tracking down Actor. It was to no avail.

Frustrated and depressed, something fairly unusual for her, she went up to Actor's room. It was the way he had left it when they went on that last mission. Terry walked slowly into the room. The bed was neatly made. No clothing littered the floor like the other three of the original team were prone to do. She wandered around, fingers trailing over furniture. A pipe rested in an ashtray on the night table; the gold lighter sitting beside it. He must have gotten that back from Goniff's sticky fingers. A book was next to the lighter. For some reason she was not about to ponder, Terry opened the armoire and slowly ran fingers through the edges of his clothes; all arranged in an orderly fashion. With a frown, she closed the doors and backed away. This brought her closer to the bed. Indulging herself, she pulled the pillow out and lay down atop the spread, folding herself around the pillow and burying her nose in it. It still faintly held his scent. Taking a deep breath in, she finally gave in to the urge to cry.

GGG

Midmorning the next day, the Packard returned with the men. Garrison had called Terry from London to let her know they were back safely. She met them at the door like always.

"Sandwiches in the dining room," she smiled

"Thank you," said Carter as he walked slowly past her.

The others were so used to her having food ready for them when they returned, they hardly ever thanked her now. It was nice to have someone show appreciation. Oh, she knew the guys appreciated her; they just didn't seem to show it unless she had been gone for a couple missions.

Terry wanted to get her brother alone and find out how the mission had gone. There wasn't any fighting and, while Carter did not seem to part of the group yet, at least they were all interacting. It was late afternoon before Terry got the chance to talk with Garrison. The officer came down the stairs and motioned her to follow him into his office. She shut the door behind her and took the chair in front of Craig's desk.

"So how did he do?" asked the girl.

"Okay," said Garrison. "He isn't comfortable on the Continent, but then neither were you, Chief and Casino at first. His German is good. He doesn't get flustered."

"That's a start," admitted Terry. "So he had to con the Germans?"

Garrison nodded. "We hit a roadblock. He handled it fine." Garrison lit a cigarette. "He doesn't have Actor's demeanor."

"Nobody has Actor's demeanor, except Actor," said Terry. "Just so long as Carter doesn't do something stupid like stutter."

"No. He can con them. He just hasn't learned how to scare the hell out of them." Craig eyed his sister. "Are you doing okay?"

"I'm fine," said Terry with the characteristic Garrison answer.


	3. Chapter 3

The Expendable One

Chapter 3

Chief stood by the open doorway into the ballroom, sipping on a glass of champagne. He casually kept an eye on the hallway Garrison and Casino had gone down, and the couple in the ballroom. The hall was empty. Terry was playing mistress again with Carter. The blond con man had an Aryan look about him that had been carefully enhanced. He was in a serious conversation with a German general and major. Terry was looking like the typical bored mistress.

The blond waiter moved in and out of the crowd and accepted a barely sipped at glass of champagne from the mistress. Hardly stopping, Goniff moved on. Terry wandered over to the buffet next to Chief. The Indian watched her make a plate of a variety of finger foods. She moved closer to the end of the table where Chief was, seeming to peruse the different offerings.

"How's he doing?" whispered Chief with barely moving lips.

"He's doing fine," said Terry in an equally low voice, without looking at him.

"You?"

"I'm always fine," she answered with a smile as she reached for a morsel from a platter of canapés.

Without any further conversation, Terry moved back to stand beside Carter and hold the plate within his reach. Carter glanced down, said something to the girl, and took a piece of food from the plate. Terry continued to stand by his side, only occasionally taking a bite of some treat. She was definitely not touching the champagne.

In another ten minutes, Garrison and Casino showed up. They stopped beside Chief and Garrison studied the crowd in the big room. Terry glanced slowly around and saw him. She ignored him, but caught Goniff's eye. The pickpocket moved back toward the kitchen area. Terry's hand casually touched Carter's back with a minute sequence of taps. The con man made some excuse to the German officers with a smile and escorted his woman toward the coat room where he obtained their coats and tipped the man tending the room. Five minutes later, they were all in the car and driving away from the party.

GGGGG

Terry had gotten up before the others so she could throw a stew on the stove to cook for supper. By the time she entered the common room, Garrison was in his office and the four cons were sitting around the table. Casino had a bag which he opened and began laying stacks of money on the table. Carter's eyebrows rose.

Terry pulled out a chair and sat. Casino began dividing the cash into five equal piles.

"Good haul," remarked Chief.

"With the food them people had, they should 'ave had a lot o' money," remarked Goniff.

The con man said nothing, but watched to see what was going to happen next. Casino shoved a pile in front of each of them. Carter picked up his stack and thumbed through it.

Casino took it upon himself to educate the new man. "It's like this," he started. "Warden gets a little bit of money from the Army. We don't get nuthin'."

Carter looked at the money in front of the girl. "I thought you were Army?"

"Not paid Army," she said. "They can't acknowledge me with a payroll because it's against the law for the Army to use women doing what we're doing where we're doing it."

Casino took over again. "Yuh see, Carter, the Warden has ground rules. One, in England, whatever we steal we have to put back. Two, over on the Continent, as long as it don't compromise a caper, we can take what we can get and keep it. It gets divided evenly between the ones who were on the mission."

"So this is mine," said Carter, just to make sure.

"It's yours, Mate," affirmed Goniff.

"What about the Lieutenant," asked Carter.

"The Lieutenant is out of luck," said Garrison from his office.

Carter grinned. "They sure didn't tell me about this when they got me out of Quentin."

"That's because they don't know about it," said Terry. "It's one of those little perks the Army doesn't need to know about."

She picked up her money and went into Craig's office to put it in the safe until she could take it to the bank in London.

"Shut the door and have a seat," said Craig. "I want to debrief with you separately this time."

Terry closed the door and walked back to sprawl in the chair in front of Garrison's desk. She looked older than her 25 years and tired in a weary sort of way. Craig watched her.

"So how is it going working with Carter?" he asked with a military bearing.

Terry shrugged. "Better than working with Fox Face. At least Carter knows what he's doing."

"Fox Face?" asked Craig with a grin.

"Well, that's what I call him in my mind." Terry grinned back. The grin faded.

"Working with Carter is not the same as working with Actor," observed Craig.

Terry looked at him warily.

Craig smiled. "It's okay, Baby. I miss him too. You don't know how much."

"Yeah , I do," said the girl. She looked solemnly at her brother. "He's not dead, Craig. He can't be dead. And the Army has given up on him. I worry about where he is and what is being done to him."

"Yeah." Garrison looked back at her. "The Army may have given up on him, but I haven't. I have friends in interesting places in G-2. They are still looking for him. I have Randy looking when he is in that area."

Terry grinned now. "And Chris has some of her friends from SOE and Free French looking for him. Only I don't think he's in France anymore."

"Neither do I," said Craig. "I think they have him stashed in Germany somewhere."

"And we don't have a whole lot of reliable connections in Germany."

Garrison brought the conversation back to the mission. "So how did Carter do with the German officers?"

"He's good," said Terry. "I have to give him that. He has a way about him. He can be serious, but in a friendly sort of way. The Germans did not know they were being conned. Before it was over they were talking like they were old friends."

"You think he's as good as Actor?" Garrison was curious to her opinion.

She made a face. "Different. I can't say better, even or worse. Just different. Actor's a walking encyclopedia. Carter isn't dumb by any means, but not as knowledgeable as Actor."

"Few people are as knowledgeable as Actor."

Terry needed to change the subject. "You going to debrief with the others?"

Garrison nodded. "Might as well do it now."

GGGGG

They waited until the tubes had been removed before taking Actor to a room in the back of the hospital for interrogation. A medium built, thin faced, dark haired SS major was waiting when they wheeled the Italian into the room. The gray-walled place was stark and devoid of anything except a couple of boxes scattered on the cement floor.

Actor's hands had been loosely tied behind the back of the high-backed wooden wheelchair he was in. It was enough to put an uncomfortable pull on his chest. The time in the hospital bed had been enough for the man to come up with the con. Now he would see if it worked.

The dark-haired SS man paced back and forth in front of Actor, not saying a word. The con man recognized it as a tactic to make him nervous. It worried him, but he did not show anything but a small smile.

"What is your name?"

"Gaetano Albero." The name rolled easily off Actor's tongue though it was a combination of first and last names he had not used before.

"Who were you working for?" asked the officer in English, stopping in front of the wheelchair.

"He called himself Smith," said Actor amicably.

The ease of obtaining the answers threw the Major off. Prisoners did not answer questions without persuasion. Especially if they were Allied soldiers. The two men had been dressed as civilians, but that did not mean they were not soldiers. This one had a strong Italian accent.

"And who was this Smith? Allied forces?" asked the major.

"I have no idea, nor did I wish to know," said Actor. "He had money and was willing to pay for my services. I find it better I do not ask questions. "

The officer frowned and studied the man in the chair. "And what services did you provide?"

"I cased the place, picked the lock on the door and stood in the hall while he did whatever he came there to do."

"What was he after?" asked the German. The safe had been untouched and nothing appeared to be missing from the desk or the room.

Actor gave a shrug of his head. "Not my business."

"And just what is your business?"

"I am a gambler," replied the con man with just the right touch of pride.

"A gambler," said the officer with a hint of disbelief. "You were not there to play cards."

"Alas, no," said Actor with slight drama. "I worked the French and Italian Rivieras before the war. Since your forces have taken over both areas, the rich pickings have practically disappeared."

"You speak English," observed the German, beginning to pace in front of him.

"I speak several languages," admitted Actor. He suppressed an urge to twist in the chair to ease the strain on his chest.

"Why English?"

Actor grinned. "So I may pull in the high rollers from England and the United States. They are the easiest to take." He watched the man think on this silently. So far it seemed the con was working.

The German turned sharply and pinned him with a stare. "You expect me to believe this?"

"It is the truth. I have nothing to hide," said Actor indifferently. A wicked grin crossed his face. "Would you have need of my services? I was captured before I could be paid."

The officer stared at him in surprise. "We believe you were working for the Allies."

"Possibly," admitted Actor. "I work for the highest bidder. I have no concern who or what they are. When this war is over, I will go back to my profession; whichever side is in power."

This had not gone at all how the SS major thought it was going to go. He had interrogated many Allied and partisan prisoners before. None had been as open or uncaring as this man. And yet, he had the urge to believe him.

The major looked at the armed corporal behind the chair. "Take him back to his room."

Actor let out a mentally held breath. So far, so good.

GGGGG

Life went on at the Mansion, though not like it had. The fights between Casino and Chief started up again. Goniff stayed out of the way, as always. Carter, now used to life in prison, did not let the two combatants bother him. Like Goniff, he stayed out of the way and generally avoided the safecracker.

One night, the three cons snuck out the window and went to the Doves without Carter. They wanted to talk, without his presence. After getting a pitcher and glasses, the three sat around a table in the corner.

"'E's a nice enough bloke," said Goniff, starting the conversation.

"Yeah," agreed Casino reluctantly. "Never thought I'd say this, but I miss havin' Beautiful around to pick on. Carter's good. He just ain't as good as Actor was."

Chief swirled the ale in his glass and frowned. "Funny. I watched Actor and Terry when they were pullin' cons. I never noticed it until it was gone."

"Noticed what?" asked Casino.

Chief shook his head. "Just little things they did that ain't there between Terr and Carter. Like, one or the other of 'em would go to get a plate of food. They'd make one up for the other. I guess things they liked. Actor'd always heap a plate up with crackers and caviar for Terry. She'd bring him certain meats and things. Most times there would be a touch between them. Not obvious."

"Wot, like lovers?" asked Goniff.

"No, not even that. Just more like they were one person." Chief shrugged. "I don't know."

"You saw all that?" asked Casino dubiously.

Chief took a sip of ale. "It's what I do. I don't think about it. It's just automatic."

Casino lit a cigarette. "She don't seem too broke up about it. Maybe they weren't so close."

"They were close," said Chief.

Casino glared at him. "An' how would you know?"

"Seen 'em together."

"Oh, like on the missions," said Casino dismissively.

Chief did not answer.

"They were close," agreed Goniff. "Had to be tuh pull off the cons they did."

"Didn't stop Beautiful from chasing dames."

"Well, 'e weren't married to 'er," said Goniff.

Chief shook his head. "She ain't gonna show anything in front of us. An' she sure can't show it in front of the Warden. How 'bout a game a' darts?" the Indian asked to get Casino off the subject.

"Sure, why not. But we get in a game of cards afterward so I can win my money back."

GGG

Carter was sitting in the upstairs common room, half-heartedly playing a game of solitaire when the door opened and the girl walked in. He paused and looked at her with curiosity.

"Can't sleep?" she asked pulling out a chair and sitting across from him.

He shook his head. "Not right now." Carter flipped a card over and placed it on a column.

Terry glanced over her shoulder at the open window. "They sneak out again?"

"Guess so," said the con man indifferently.

"How come you didn't go with them?" asked Terry curiously.

"Wasn't invited." He looked at her and smiled. "Nice touch with the cut bars."

The girl grinned. "Easy access to climbing down the trellis too. Unless you're agile and can snag the branch and climb down the tree." She reached across the table and shifted a card to a different pile.

"That what you do?" asked the man, putting in back where it was.

"Sometimes," admitted Terry. "He hates it when I . . ."

Carter looked at the closed expression that dropped over the girl's face.

"Must be hard to have to work with me, when you worked that close with him," observed the blonde.

Terry looked up. "I'm sorry," she said. "I'm not doing good by you. You are good at the con."

"I don't expect you to like me," said Carter, cards forgotten now. "You're good yourself. We're doing fine."

Terry nodded. The stealthy sound of someone climbing the wall saved her from continuing the conversation.

Goniff came through the window first, followed by Casino and Chief. The pickpocket stood off to the side and shifted from one foot to the other. The three stopped and stared at the two occupants of the room.

"Forget something?" asked Terry sarcastically with a shift of her eyes to the con man.

"Didn't figure he'd want to come," said Casino.

"It's okay, Terry," said Carter. "I didn't feel like getting drunk tonight anyway."

"We ain't drunk," retorted the safecracker defensively.

"Sure," said Terry in a tone that showed she didn't buy that one. She got up and headed for the door. "Good night, Boys."

"Good night, Terry," said Carter.

The men watched her leave.

"She okay?" asked Goniff.

Carter nodded. "Guess as good as can be expected." He looked at the three. "This Actor . . . was he the one who stole the Monet from the Louvre in '35? Heard tales about him in stir if he's the same one."

"He never 'fessed up to the Louvre heist," said Casino, "but he probably did it."

"He was a confidence man," said Carter. "How come he ended up on the Rock?"

"Because 'e talked his way out of other prisons," replied Goniff with a grin.

"Guess they figured the swim to shore would stop him," added Chief.

"You plannin' on writin' a book or somethin'?" asked Casino. "Why the questions about Actor?"

Carter scooped up his cards and neatly stacked them in a pile. "Just trying to find out about my predecessor and maybe then I can figure her out." He tilted his head toward the door Terry had gone through.

"Nothing for you to figure out about her," said Casino belligerently. "She was taught by the best. That was Actor. And she's used tuh workin' with the best too."

"So I see," said the con man amicably.

Chief and Goniff watched the two men. Casino seemed to be itching for a fight with the new man. Pushed too far, Actor would accommodate the safe cracker. Carter just turned and walked away.


	4. Chapter 4

The Expendable One

Chapter 4

Another week passed with a couple more encounters with the SS Major Heins. Actor maintained his story and the façade he had presented at the first meeting. He remained handcuffed to the bed, but now one limb at a time was freed to give him a break. The armed guards stayed and no one spoke to him. Now he was taken for walks several times a day. They seemed to be trying to rebuild his strength, but to what end he had no idea.

One day, the door opened and three guards and the major entered.

"You will be leaving now," said Major Heins.

"And my destination?" asked Actor with seeming unconcern.

"We have a special place for you."

The major stood by the door as Actor was released from the bed and shackled, wrists and ankles. "Special place' did not sound good. He was assisted roughly into the wheelchair and rolled out the door and down the hall. They pushed him past the interrogation room and out a door at the end of the hall. A prison van was waiting for him at the bottom of a ramp, back door held open by yet another guard. They must think him dangerous with all the security.

Actor was assisted out of the chair and into the back of the van to sit on a bench along one wall. He could just barely see out a grated opening to the front of the van. Two of the guards climbed in the back with him and the other two took the front seats, one driving while the other rode shotgun.

As the vehicle moved through the streets, Actor realized he was in Berlin. He had been there ten years ago. The changes since that time seemed to be more from the Allied bombings than anything else. After a bit, the con man concluded they were headed east, deeper into Germany. That was not a good thing. Nobody would be able to find him now. Though he thought he had accepted that before, there had still been that niggling hope that Garrison would come for him. The man was skilled enough, if allowed to hunt for his missing man. That was the problem. Actor was no fool. He knew the army would not agree to any requests to spend time and resources looking for him. He was, after all, expendable. He was just another convict. Knowing there were no confidence men of his standard did not help. It just meant Garrison would be working with a handicap.

A few hours later, Actor was wishing he could lie down. He had not been allowed to be up long enough at the hospital to regain the strength needed for this journey. The vehicle slowed to a stop. The con man looked out the window at the wired gates which opened to allow them into the compound of wooden buildings, the type of which he was familiar with from previous missions. He was in a prison camp.

Unbidden, he wondered where Garrison was now.

GGGGG

Garrison looked down at his uniform and over at Carter's. Thank heavens he had drawn the ranking SS officer's uniform. Though he and Carter were of the same height, the con man was slender where Garrison was muscular. The colonel's uniform would have fit Carter loosely. So, Garrison would be the one running the con.

Carter was comfortable now with conning the Germans, but he did not have the sneering, arrogant demeanor that Actor could slip into so easily. Hell, thought Craig, even he did not have it. And that was what would be needed to spring Casino, or what was left of Casino after two days of interrogation at the hands of the Gestapo. Not for the first time, Garrison wished his second were here and wondered where he was at this moment.

The resistance had provided forged papers so Garrison would not have to try to bully his way through this. He just hoped the papers would be enough.

The papers had admitted Garrison, Carter and Goniff into the SS colonel's office. Garrison eyed the tall graying stern officer with a steely countenance of his own.

"We believe this prisoner is part of a ring we are after. Have you gotten any information out of him?" asked Garrison.

"Not yet," admitted the colonel.

"I thought not," said Garrison, dismissively. "The SS will take over now. He will be taken to Berlin where we have no concerns of anyone trying to free him. Bring him here. _Sofort!"_

The colonel looked a bit taken aback. "He is not in very good condition."

"Then perhaps you might take us to see for ourselves," said Carter with a decent tone of threat to his voice.

Garrison wondered just how much damage had been done to the safecracker. Carter's suggestion had been the nudge needed. The three were led to the basement and a solid-doored cell. The door was opened to allow light to spill in a triangle across the floor of the cell. Casino was sprawled, face down, on the floor. The upper half of him was covered in blood.

"Is he even alive?" asked Garrison with disgust.

"I assure you he is," said the colonel.

Garrison motioned with his hand for the officer to precede them into the cell. He was not about to step inside and be trapped. Obviously not comfortable, the colonel walked in first and skirted around the prone man, but remained within the triangle of light. Garrison stood at the door and allowed Carter and Goniff to enter.

Carter nudged Casino with the toe of him boot. This earned him a German curse from the injured man.

"Bring him," ordered Garrison.

Carter and Goniff got Casino under the arms and dragged him up. He was very unsteady. Now Garrison could see the slashes across the man's back. Riding crop most likely, and used heavily.

The look of disgust stayed on Garrison's face as his man was half dragged from the cell. Goniff and Carter paused in front of him.

Craig addressed the German officer. "Do you have a blanket? I do not wish to have his blood all over the seat of my car."

The colonel snapped his fingers and a guard ran to get a blanket. It was draped over Casino's shoulders and back before he was again assisted and half-dragged up the stairs. Carter and Goniff did not stop, but headed for the door to the outside.

Garrison turned to the German officer. "Bungled. You have almost killed him and still did not get any information. Berlin will hear about this." He spun on his heels and strode out the door behind his men.

As soon as all the car doors closed, Chief drove off and zigzagged through the town. Satisfied they were not being tailed, Garrison directed him to go to the safe house.

"Casino?" asked Garrison.

"Yeah," the tone was normal, but the voice was weak.

"It's a little farther, then we can try to get you comfortable until we go meet the plane."

At the safe house in the woods, Casino was helped inside. Chief went back outside to take up the watch. Garrison shrugged out of his tunic and tossed it over the back of a chair. Carter and Goniff had the safecracker on his stomach on a couch. Garrison tried to carefully peel the blanket off the mutilated back, but it was stuck in several places with dried blood.

"Easy, Warden," yelped Casino. "I might wanna use my back again."

"Sorry," said Garrison.

The crisscrosses covering the man's back oozed blood. The three men seeing it were appalled. It was amazing to them the safecracker had not broken.

"What can we do?" asked Carter.

Garrison looked at his two men. "Get towels, warm water, and find a clean sheet we can rip up to make bandages."

"And see if there's a bottle in this place," said Casino's muffled voice. His arms were crossed with his head resting atop them.

Goniff scurried to find a basin or bowl he could put water in. Carter dug through cupboards, retrieved some towels, a ragged sheet that was fairly clean and in the last cupboard a half empty bottle of whiskey. Garrison took the sheet and began ripping it into strips. Carter helped Casino turn and rise up on one elbow. The safecracker pulled the cork out of the bottle with his teeth, spitting it across the floor, and proceeded to chug the fiery liquor down.

"I'm afraid that isn't going to help much," warned Garrison.

"I know." Casino turned his swollen bruised face to the officer. "Just do what you gotta do, Warden."

"I'm just going to clean it up and bandage you until we can get you to a hospital in England."

Casino took another pull of whiskey. "You can have a doctor look at it," he said, "but I ain't stayin' in a hospital. I just want to get back to the mansion."

Garrison did not reply to that. He sat and waited until Casino had just about drained the bottle. Carter took it easily from his hand and gave it to Goniff. The pickpocket was worriedly watching his friend.

"'S fine," the voice was slightly slurred. "Do it, Warden."

Casino slid back onto his stomach. Craig wet the first towel in the warm water of the basin and started at the man's shoulders, trying to be a gentle as possible. It got him another curse word from the safecracker, in English this time. Goniff began pacing and darting back and forth to watch and turn away. Carter sat cross-legged on the floor close to Casino's head, watching and handing towels to the lieutenant as he worked his way down the injured man's back.

When he had cleaned as best he could, Garrison instructed the two men to sit Casino up. The safecracker was wobbly, but still fully feeling everything that was done to him. With Carter on the right and Goniff on the left holding Casino up, Garrison began covering the torn flesh with the strips of sheet and tying them in the front. When he was done, they lay Casino on his side. After a short time, low snores came from the man.

"Watch him," Garrison instructed Carter. "He's got a lot of alcohol on board and I don't want him to stop breathing."

"He won't," said Goniff. "I've seen 'im drink more than that before."

"Yes," agreed Garrison, "but he wasn't in this shape when you saw him do it."

Goniff shrugged and nodded in agreement. He picked up the basin of bloody water and took it outside to dump it. Garrison looked at his watch. It would be another five hours before the plane arrived to pick them up.

GGGGG

Actor kept an impassive look on his face. He had learned the rules a long time ago. Never show them you are in pain or afraid. Screws were screws, no matter what country or what year. He was not afraid, much, but he was in pain. He held his hands out and allowed one of the guards to open the cuffs. The ankle shackles were removed next. With great internal effort, Actor stood and climbed down from the back of the van. He looked around, but in the dim light of sunset, he could not see much.

A gun prodded him in the back and aimed him toward the steps of one of the buildings. Another guard opened the door and Actor entered. There were cots in a row along one long wall, perpendicular with head at the wall and feet into the room. A long table was at one end of the room and occupied by men in various uniforms and dress. They were all watching silently. Actor stood in the middle of the floor studying the prisoners who were studying him. As soon as the guards left and the door closed, three of the nine men stood and moved up to him.

"Billingsly," said the first man. He was wearing an RAF uniform with the rank of colonel.

"Albero," said Actor.

"Ah, an Italian," said a Frenchman in civilian clothes.

"Yes, I am Italian," said Actor.

"Well don't make the man stand there," said the third man, a blonde with a Boston accent. "He looks like he could use a bunk."

"Sorry," apologized Billingsly. "Here, let's show you to your cot."

The balding man led the way to a cot in the middle of the row. Actor needed to sit before he disgraced himself and fell down. The rest of the men gathered around and introductions were made. All of the military men were officers. The rest spoke with upper class accents.

Actor glanced around. "Spacious quarters for a prison camp."

"Ah," said the Frenchman, "but this is not your ordinary prison camp."

Actor waited for an explanation. It was the RAF colonel who provided it. He seemed to be the head man of the group.

"We are a collection," Billingsly said. "For the commandant. He collects people. People with keen minds and better than your average upbringing."

"For what purpose?" Actor asked with interest.

"He apparently has his own agenda. He 'uses' each of us in a different way. We will find out tomorrow what he thinks of you."

GGGGG

Chief turned the Packard up the drive to the mansion. He began halfway up the gravel drive to blow the car horn, three shorts and a long. As they pulled into the car park, close to the steps, Garrison saw Terry's green MG parked nearby and the girl hurrying down the steps. For once, he was happy she was home. The car parked close to the steps. Garrison got out and reached for the back door handle. Terry bounded to his side.

"That was way too many horns," said the girl worriedly. "Who's hurt."

"Casino," replied Garrison.

Craig opened the back passenger door and Goniff got out, turning to reach inside and help Casino move stiffly to the edge of the seat. The pickpocket took one arm and Garrison the other. Together they got the safecracker out and to his feet. He had no shirt on, but his chest was wrapped in white bandages.

"What do I need to do?" asked Terry trying to ascertain where all the man's injuries were.

"Doctor took care of his back for now. He needs to get down flat," said Garrison.

Terry turned and ran up the steps into the house. The others followed more slowly. Casino was having a difficult time making it up the steps and they helped him one step at a time. By the time they reached the second floor, Terry was standing at the door to Casino's room. She let the men go in first and followed them.

Casino unbuckled his belt and dropped his pants before he sat heavily on the side of the bed with a groan of pain. Garrison and Carter pulled his boots and pants off and the four men got him into bed and on his side.

"What happened?" demanded the girl.

"Germans had him for forty-eight hours," said Garrison. "His back is pretty shredded. Doctor treated him and bandaged it. There's salve in the car. You need to change the dressings twice a day."

"Okay," said the girl, "but why is he here and not in the hospital."

"No hospital," objected Casino loudly.

Terry shot a look at her brother and went to sit on her heels by Casino's head. His brown eyes looked at her, begging her to understand. She didn't understand, but there was nothing to do about it now. She reached a hand up and brushed the curl of dark hair back off his bruised forehead.

"It's okay," she said softly. "Where else are you hurt?"

Garrison motioned the men to leave the girl and the safecracker alone. He would have to explain to her later. For now, her presence seemed to calm Casino. The men eased out the door and walked back downstairs.

Casino looked at Terry. "They just beat me up some. The colonel had a thing for ridin' crops I guess."

Terry tilted her head so they were looking straight at each other. Her hand continued to brush over his hair. "Didn't get anything out of you though, did he," she said with certainty.

"Naw," said Casino. "I didn't talk." The last was said with a little pride.

"Have you had pain medicine?" asked the girl.

"At the hospital before we left." He watched her. "It's gettin' better now I'm layin' down."

"So why didn't you stay at the hospital?" Terry asked curiously. "It's not like you haven't been in one before."

"Still don't like 'em," said Casino. "Am I gonna be too much trouble for yuh?" he asked defensively.

She smiled, "No, Babe, no trouble. You know that."

He allowed her to take a closer look at his one black eye and bruised face. She would see the back that evening when she changed the dressing. Terry helped him get more comfortable in the bed and carefully pulled the covers up and over him. He did not want food or drink.

"Babe, are you going to be okay if I go downstairs and kick my brother's backside for leaving you with the Germans for two days?" asked Terry.

"Hey, don't blame the Warden," said Casino. "He did the best he could. And he got me out."

Terry nodded.

"I'm okay," added the safecracker. "Think I'll take a nap."

The girl assured him she would be back to sit with him until she had to make lunch. She would bring him something to eat then. He tried to grin around split lips without much success.

Garrison heard her boots bounding down the steps and watched his door in anticipation of her outburst. He was surprised when she entered, calmly for her. She sat on the corner of his desk and chewed on a cheek.

"What happened?"

"He was setting a fire as a diversion and was caught this time." Garrison shook his head in frustration. They had a few good missions and then things went back to normal, all bad.

"Why did it take so long to get him out?" asked the girl.

"Goniff got us uniforms, but we had to wait on the resistance to get us false identification papers."

Terry made a face. "Carter?"

Garrison shook his head. "He did well, but he doesn't have the demeanor, and neither do I, to bluff our way in and out." He frowned. "Casino's back is bad. We just couldn't get there in time."

"He's okay with it," said Terry.

"Can you handle him?" asked the lieutenant worriedly.

"Of course," said Terry with a hint of her old cockiness.

"You haven't seen his back."

"I have a good imagination," said the girl. "At least it will be awhile before he starts giving me trouble." A thought crossed her mind. "Did you debrief with whoever yet?"

Garrison shook his head. "I wanted to get Casino here first."

"London?" asked the girl.

"Brandonshire."

"Give Schaeffer my best," Terry said sarcastically.

"If I did that I'd end up in the stockade."

Terry chuckled. "You're learning, Brother."

"You need anything from Brandonshire?"

"Just tell Kit I won't be in again and bring back a bottle of bourbon."

"For Casino or you?"

"Casino. He doesn't like Morphine either."

GGG

It was early afternoon by the time Garrison returned. And there was a briefcase cuffed to his wrist. The other men had eaten and gone to their rooms to get some rest. Craig went into his office and unlocked the cuff, letting the briefcase sit, unopened, on his desk. He leaned back in his chair and stared at it.

A few minutes later, Terry entered the office with a plate of sandwiches and a glass of milk. She pulled up short at sight of the briefcase.

"Oh, no," she shook her head. "You just got back. You haven't slept."

"We leave tomorrow night," said Garrison wearily.

"Who's going to open the safe?" asked Terry. "And don't say me."

"No safe," replied her brother. "Go in, get a defecting general, and get out."

"And who has this general?" asked Terry worriedly.

Craig shook his head. "Nobody yet. He is going to be at a party in Potsdam. We pick him up, head for Leipzig and get picked up by a plane."

"Easy mission," said Terry disgustedly.

Both wondered what would go wrong on this one. Where was Actor when you really needed him. Neither even knew if the man was still alive.


	5. Chapter 5

49\. The Expendable One

Chapter 5

The next day proved interesting for Actor. First, he was unable to perform the morning calisthenics which resulted in the commandant and the prisoners discovering how badly he had been injured. Surprisingly, there had been no reprisals from the commandant, Colonel Graf.

Graf was a thin, middle-aged man with the bearing of a count of old. He did not have the harsh demeanor of a prison commandant. Actor pictured him more at home in a manor house and at the theater than in a prison camp. But then he was frequently told by the prisoners this was not your run of the mill prison camp.

Actor, now Albero, spent the day in the barracks playing bridge and a variety of card games with the men. He listened carefully and studied the men surreptitiously. Most were officers from allied countries. The rest were people of high birth and economic stations from the surrounding countries. The non-military men had been officials in their towns or countries, who had been in defiance of Hitler. Instead of being executed or sent to concentration and work camps, they had been sent here.

The conversations were enjoyable as they all shared the same taste in the arts and music as he had. It was agreed by all the Italian would fit in fine. It was with amusement they refused to tell him how he would fit in. They would let Col. Graf tell him. Actor's first instinct was this would be of a sexual nature. It was a well-kept secret in German high circles and not something Actor wanted to experience firsthand. But none of the men in his barracks seemed of the _finocchio_ persuasion.

It was the Frenchman who had been designated to find out more about the Italian.

"Do you have any family?"

"No," replied Actor.

"Ah, but a man such as yourself must have many women," said the Frenchman with a knowing grin.

"Naturally," admitted Actor. To give nothing up would invite more digging and distrust.

"A special woman?" teased the man.

Teresa immediately came to mind. He shook his head. "Better not to. A woman expects too much." Except Teresa. "And you?" he asked pleasantly.

"I have a wife and three children, a fine son and two girls."

"In France?" That would not be good.

"No, I sent them to relatives in South America when Hitler got too close to Paris. No war there."

It was after a noon meal consisting of a watery root vegetable soup and a small bit of stale bread, that two armed guards entered the barracks and stated the colonel requested Albero's presence. He stood from the table and maintained a slightly arrogant bearing, as though he was granting the audience with the officer. His demeanor offset the scruffy borrowed clothing he had arrived in.

At Actor's entrance, Graf stood up from his chair behind a richly carved wooden desk. He graciously motioned with his hand for the Italian to take a seat in a wooden chair in front of him. Actor nodded and sat, back straight, hands resting on each thigh. The commandant opened a bottle of Riesling and poured some in two crystal glasses. One of the glasses was placed on the edge of the desk within the con man's reach.

"Please, join me in a drink," said the officer in a friendly manner. When Actor made no move to pick up the glass, Graf said, "Please, I assure you it is merely wine. It is safe to drink." He took a sip of his.

Actor lifted the glass and took a bare sip of it. Not a bad Riesling. He watched the colonel take his seat, set his wine glass on the desk and open a file in front of him.

"I see from the report on you, Herr Albero, that you are a gambler by trade. It says you are very familiar with the French and Italian Rivieras. A man with discerning tastes, I am sure."

Actor did not answer. He watched and waited.

"It also says you are fluent in French, Italian, German and English. Impressive."

Actor let him be impressed with four languages. He no longer knew just how many he was either fluent or able to converse freely in. The hazel brown eyes watched the German officer, waiting for the next move on the man's part.

The officer seemed to take Actor's silence in stride. He took another sip of wine. "Tell me, are you a lover of Shakespeare?"

"I enjoy it," said Actor, carefully.

Graf sat back with a tilt of his head. "True nobility is exempt from fear. Henry the Sixth Part Three."

Ah, a word game, thought Actor. "Actually, Part Two."

This brought a satisfied smile to the German's face. "You do know your Shakespeare, Herr Albero. And you have the voice for the Bard. Deep and rich."

Actor wondered where this was headed. Shakespeare, in a prison camp?

"Perhaps we might spend an evening now and then reading Shakespeare. And I am sure you are more well versed that that."

The con man refrained from answering. Where was the interrogation? Where were the questions of who was he working for? How did he make contact with the Allied man? Who was the Allied man? Yes, it was very strange.

GGGGG

Casino opened his eyes and made the mistake of trying to move. His back felt like it was splitting into a million pieces. His eyes rested on the girl sitting in the chair at his bedside. She was reading a book with a French title on the cover.

"You need to move a little more or your back and those wounds are going to stiffen up," Terry said quietly.

"You're stayin' with me?" asked the safecracker in surprise.

Terry put the open book down across her knee. "Of course I'm staying with you. Where did you think I would go?"

"I don't know," he replied. "Thought maybe you'd leave the Warden to take care of me."

"Don't be ridiculous," scoffed the girl. "You know I take care of you guys. All of you." She said firmly. "I've stayed with Goniff and Actor. Only stay with Chiefy a little bit. He doesn't like company."

"I think maybe Chiefy likes different company than you, Babe," said Casino, pain just below the surface of his voice. Still, he almost laughed at the expression on the girl's face.

"I really don't think Chief swings that way," she said dubiously.

"I meant your sister."

"What do you know about my sister?"

"Not hard to figure," he replied. "Hey, you got anything to drink?"

"Water?"

"Bourbon."

Normally Terry would not use alcohol on a regular basis for pain management, but she knew Casino hated the morphine almost as much as Actor had. And the man could hold his liquor. So she nodded and got the bottle that Craig had brought back with him. She poured a finger's worth in the empty water glass and set it on the night table so she could help him sit up. It brought a grimace of more pain to the safecracker's face.

Casino looked at the empathetic expression on Terry's face, but the bourbon drew his attention away from her. Still, she stayed close while he chugged the dark liquid down. She took the empty glass from him and helped him back down on the bed. He watched her take a look at the dressings across his back before she draped the covers over him.

"Thanks, Babe," he said in a quieter voice.

"Any time," smiled the girl.

She lightly rested the backs of her fingers against his forehead and cheek, feeling for the fever she expected. He was a little warm, but not overly so.

"What would you like for supper?" Terry asked. She would have to start cooking soon.

Food did not appeal much to him. He wasn't really hungry. "I don't know."

"You want soup or something more solid?" she coaxed.

"Soup's fine." He watched her sit back down on the chair. "You don't have to go to no trouble."

"It's no trouble," she said. "I want you to eat so I'm happy to make what you want as long as I have the stuff to make it."

As she reached for her book, Casino reached a hand over and patted her knee. "You're a good kid," he said with just a slight slur. The bourbon on a mostly empty stomach was beginning to take effect.

"I don't think I'm a kid anymore," said Terry with a chuckle.

"I noticed."

She shot him a surprised look, but his eyelids were closing. Terry shook her head with a grin and opened her book.

GGG

Later that afternoon, when the men were awake and had come downstairs, Garrison held his briefing. The three cons were not enthusiastic about going right back in again on another mission. They all sat around the table in Garrison's office. The officer sat at the head of the table as always. Chief and Goniff were on one side and Carter on the other side.

Garrison put on his military persona. "As you have already figured out, we have a mission. We leave at 2000 tomorrow." He passed a photograph to Carter first.

The con man studied it and passed it across the table to Chief and Goniff. Chief picked it up but held it so Goniff could see it. The man wore a General's uniform. He was probably close to 60 years of age, with graying blond hair and light colored eyes.

"That is General Friederich Hess."

"Any relation?" asked Carter.

"No, no relation to Rudolf," replied Garrison. Someone else would have known that already. He continued. "He is trying to defect."

"What's so important about 'im?" asked Goniff.

"He knows the timetables, plans and divisions that will be launched against Russia."

"So?" said Carter. "I say let the Krauts take on Stalin."

"Is he worth sendin' us in short-handed again? And where are we goin' this time," asked Chief with disgust and distrust.

"He's important. Stalin is an ally whether we like him or not. And G-2 wants to give him a heads up on Hitler's plans." Garrison answered the other question. "Hess is in Potsdam, outside of Berlin. We'll be dropped outside Leipzig and take the train to Potsdam. Carter and I will attend a party and connect with Hess. We will invite him out for drinks and not bring him back to the party. We drive back to Leipzig and get picked up by plane again."

"There resistance there?" asked Carter.

"In Leipzig, yes. There's one contact in Potsdam."

"Terrific," said a disgruntled Chief.

"Get some rest." Garrison ignored him. "This may be a long one."

GGG

Goniff went upstairs and poked his head into Casino's room. Terry turned and motioned him to come in.

"Good timing, Goniff," she said. "I need to start cooking. You want to stay and keep Casino company?"

"Sure." The blond shrugged.

Terry gave her chair to him. She paused by the door and looked back with a small grin. "Try to keep out of trouble, huh?"

Casino opened an eye and looked at her. "Just what kinda trouble you think I can get in right now?"

"With you two I couldn't begin to guess," she teased.

"Hey," he called back to her. "I changed my mind. I wanna steak and potato, medium rare."

"I'll take that into consideration," she shot back to him.

What they all got was a soup of minced beef and diced potato, carrots, and parsnips.

GGG

That evening, Garrison went upstairs to Casino's room. His sister was just starting to carefully cut the dressings around the safecracker's chest with scissors. Craig shut the door and approached. Casino looked up at him.

"Ain't lookin' forward to this, Warden."

Craig shook his head. "I don't imagine you are."

"You come to help?" asked Terry hopefully.

"I figured that would be a good idea. I've seen his back. You haven't yet." He wasn't sure how the girl would react. He was certain she had seen some awful injuries in her work, but maybe not like this.

The dressings were not totally dried on. The ointment applied at the hospital made them sticky, but they peeled off. Even so, Casino clenched his teeth.

"Have you had pain medicine?" asked Craig with concern.

"Yeah, liquid. Don't want morphine," said the cracksman.

Terry paused what she was doing. "I can stop and give you some now," she offered for the second time that evening.

Casino shook his head.

Both Garrisons went back to slowly peeling the stained dressings off his back. When they were off, Terry got her first good look at the damage.

" _Madre Santa del Dio!"_ she breathed.

The entire surface was covered in crisscross slashes, some superficial, but most fairly deep. The bleeding had begun again in spots. Terry looked at the pint jar of salve in her hand and at the area it had to cover. She looked at Craig, who could see what she was thinking.

"We'll pick more up when we get back from the mission," he said.

Casino's ears had perked up at that. "You goin' with them, Babe?" he asked.

"No," said Terry. "It isn't anything Craig and Carter can't manage."

Normally, with a party, she would have gone along to act as the companion of the confident man. This time he would have to do it on his own. And she had no worries that Carter could manage just fine. Terry's attention went back to the wounds and she stifled a sigh. She looked at Garrison and jerked her head toward the door, letting him know he could go.

"You tell me when you need a break," she said to Casino. "This has to hurt."

"I'll let yuh know if it gets too bad."

She dipped fingers into the jar and started coating his upper back with the salve.

GGGGG

The next morning, the men sat on the long benches on either side of the wooden tables, eating a thin gruel for breakfast. Actor waited until the servers had taken the tall pots away to be cleaned and they were in relative privacy. They routinely checked for bugs before the breakfast arrived and were confident their conversation was secure.

"Has anyone ever escaped from here?" asked Actor as if in idle curiosity.

That garnered a laugh from around the table.

"And where would we go, _Mon Ami_?" asked Henri. "Poland? Czechoslovakia? Back to Berlin? We could not even make it to Denmark and that is held by the Reich also."

Billingsly shook his head. "Most of us do not speak German. Even if we did, how would we get so many of us out?"

Actor looked around and saw it indeed would be a problem for these men. He doubted few, if any, had Special Forces skills. No, these were regular military men; officers granted and a few well born at that, but none that would make it more than a mile without being caught. In the condition he was in, he doubted he would even make it a mile. It looked like he would have to bide his time, heal, and study the workings and layout of the prison camp to determine a way he could escape alone. There were too many here to trust that a breakout plan would not be traded to the commandant for favors.

GGGGG

Garrison heard dishes clinking together in the kitchen when he and Chief returned from their morning run. The Indian went up to shower and the lieutenant wandered into the kitchen. Terry had her head in the refrigerator now.

"Coffee's on the stove," she said without looking up.

She pulled eggs, milk and bread, placing them on the table beside the mixing bowl. Straightening, she placed her hands on her lower back and arched backward. Craig looked at her and noted the dark circles under her eyes.

"Didn't get any sleep last night?" he asked, helping himself to coffee.

"Some," said the girl. "He was restless. Hopefully, he'll be better tonight."

"Is that going to heal well?" asked Garrison dubiously.

"He's going to be scarred for life," she said, accepting the cup of coffee he had poured for her. "If I can keep him moving, it might keep him from stiffening too much."

"I'll have the guys take turns with him so you can get a little rest," said Garrison. "You're going to be alone with him for the next few days."

Terry nodded, too tired to object. It wouldn't be the first time she had stayed up for days with one of them. And she knew it wouldn't be the last.

GGGGG

Three nights later, Garrison and the men were at the party in Potsdam. Chief had remained with the car this time. Goniff was acting as an aide for Garrison, while Carter worked the room. Goniff did not like being in this position, but the lieutenant needed someone to act as lookout for him.

Upon arriving at the safe house in Potsdam, the lieutenant had been informed by their contact of some plans and maps in the safe of the Feldmarschall's house where the party was taking place. At first, Garrison was skeptical of being able to access the papers without having Casino along to open the safe. Erich had smiled and handed him a scrap of paper with the combination written on it. The resistance had a man on the staff of the manor house. Previously, they had no easy way to get information to the Allies. Was Garrison interested? _Naturlich._

The lieutenant casually scanned the large ballroom where the party was being held. Their quarry was in a far corner, engrossed in conversation with the Feldmarschall and a couple high ranking officers. In the middle of the room, dressed in the formal uniform of an SS general, papers in pocket to prove it and patent smile on his face, Carter mingled. The conman turned his head and gave a minute nod to Garrison.

" _Kom mit mir,"_ Garrison said to Goniff.

Having been coached and heard those words enough times before, Goniff stepped out behind the lieutenant and followed him down the hallway. Passing a couple strolling in the hall, Garrison stopped and removed a cigarette from a case. The Englishman immediately produced a lighter and lit the end for his officer. The couple disappeared back into the ballroom and Garrison carefully opened the door to the office, listening for sounds of occupants. The room was empty.

Craig turned on a desk lamp and motioned with his head for Goniff to check the safe that was behind the ever present picture of Hitler. The second story man gingerly felt around the edges of the frame. There were no wires. He pulled the picture away and stepped back by the door to keep a look out.

Garrison turned the dial on the safe with the combination he had memorized. It was the right one and the door opened easily. There was a stack of official looking papers. Craig pulled them out and took them to the table. He removed the tiny camera from his inside jacket pocket and set about photographing each sheet. There were more than a few plans here and not all of them had to do with the Russian offensive.

Goniff watched through a crack he made opening the door. The longer they were there, the more worried he became. The Warden was taking too long. Somebody was sure to come by. As if conjured by that thought, two German officers came out of the ballroom and walked slowly down the hall toward the office, engaged in conversation. Goniff snapped his fingers and closed the door silently.

Garrison flipped the lamp off and ducked down on his heels behind a club chair, gun ready. They waited. Goniff remained beside the door, listening intently. The footsteps and conversation approached and passed on by. The pickpocket waited a little longer to make sure the men had moved sufficiently beyond the door before snapping his fingers again.

Craig quickly resumed taking pictures. In another minute, he was done and tucked the camera back into his pocket. He gathered the papers and returned them to the safe. Closing the safe door and spinning the dial back to the number it was on before he had entered the combination, the officer removed his handkerchief and wiped down the dial, handle and safe door. He positioned the portrait of _Der Führer_ back in place and wiped down the frame as he had seen Casino do a multitude of times before. Stepping back to the desk, he wiped the lamp and turned it off with the handkerchief over his fingers.

Goniff slowly opened the door enough to see out and then opened it wider when he saw the hall was empty. It was with relief, he and the Warden casually made their way back to the ballroom.

Carter had already made contact with Gen. Hess. The two were chatting like friends who had not seen each other in a long time. A flit of eye contact was made between the con man and Garrison before Carter suggested to Hess they return to Carter's hotel where they could catch up on old times in relative peace and quiet. The general was most agreeable to that plan.

The return with the general to the safe house went amazingly without incident. They changed into different clothes and identities. Erich provided the new papers, removed the party uniforms and gave Chief the keys to a different vehicle.

While Carter applied makeup to Gen. Hess's face to change his appearance, Garrison took Erich aside for a quiet talk.

"We lost a man over a month ago," said Garrison. "We were in France. He was shot and captured. He disappeared without a trace. We think he was brought to Germany. There are rumors of a special prison camp, but nobody knows the location or if it even exists."

Erich nodded. "Yes, we have heard that also. Unfortunately, we are less than a dozen and do not have the manpower to look for such a place. Tell me what your man looks like and I will see what I can find out."

Garrison described Actor down to the scars on the man's body. Erich nodded.

"If I hear anything, I will get a message to England." He frowned. "I would not hold much hope after this long a time. Perhaps he died of his injuries."

Garrison looked away. "That may be, or he may still be alive somewhere."

"We will do the best we can, Lieutenant," promised the resistance man.


	6. Chapter 6

49 Expendable One

Chapter 6

Casino was not one to stay in bed. With Terry's help, he got up several times a day and walked around. He could not lean back in a chair, but he could sit for brief periods of time in the common room on a straight chair. One afternoon, a couple days after the others had gone, he and the girl were sitting at the card table in the upstairs common room playing poker, when the phone rang.

"Too early for them to be back," said Terry.

She jumped up and bounded down the stairs to answer the ringing. After fifteen minutes and she did not return, Casino began to wonder what had gone wrong now. He pushed his chair back and stood, stiffly, grumbling at the pain in his back. Walking to the top of the stairs, he was surprised to see the girl sitting partway down the steps, receiver on the step beside her. She was not moving.

Casino moved slowly down the steps and lowered himself to the step a couple behind her, feet straddling her. He reached down and picked up the phone. There was no one on the other end. Reaching through the rails, he dropped it onto the cradle.

"Terry? What's wrong, Babe? Did something happen to the guys?" he asked.

The girl shook her head. He voice was devoid of any feeling. "That was the RAF base outside London. Royce's plane took a direct hit with flak. No chutes. They held the memorial three days ago. They kind of forgot to call me until now."

Casino looked at the uncharacteristically bowed head and reached a hand out to rub her shoulder. It seemed to trigger a need in her and she half turned to bury her face into his chest. He put his arms around her, despite the pain to his back.

"First we lose Actor, now Royce is dead. No bodies, no nothing. Here one minute, gone the next. Who's it going to be next?"

"Easy, Baby," crooned the safecracker. "I can't answer that. It's a war. People die in war. It ain't right, but it's what happens."

"I know." Her resigned voice was muffled in his shirt. She stayed where she was. "I try not to think about Monty up in one of those Forts. Royce bought it in a Lancaster bomber."

"If it's his time, ain't nuthin' you can do to change that, Terr."

Her head came back and she looked at him. "That was profound," she remarked.

"Yuh mean comin' from me?" he asked, not offended.

"From anybody," she said. "And yeah, from you. There's more to you than you let on."

Casino gave a crooked smile. "Well, don't tell anybody or they'll be expectin' more outta me."

That brought an attempted smile to the girl's face. She frowned and straightened. "You can't be comfortable like this."

"I'm fine." He wasn't comfortable, but he wasn't about to give up holding the woman in his arms until he had to.

She obviously did not buy his assurance because she pulled away and stood up. "Come on, let's get you back to bed."

GGGGG

It was Wednesday. Terry had gone into Brandonshire to do her weekly shopping at the farm market. Casino was moving a little easier now and was able to stay alone for a couple hours. He hadn't had the inclination to get up and race to catch the phone so he let it ring. Unfortunately, when she returned, he forgot to tell the girl it had rung.

A couple hours later the Packard pulled into the car park. Garrison was the first in the door. His sister had come out of the kitchen when she heard the door and the men.

"I didn't know you were back," said Terry.

"Where were you?" demanded Garrison irritably. "I called and you didn't answer."

Terry's eyes narrowed. "I was in Brandonshire getting food to stuff your face with, Brother," she shot back just an irritably. "Give me a little bit and I'll get something for you to eat."

"I'm not hungry," said Garrison.

"And you're not the only one I feed," she replied, turning and striding toward the kitchen.

The three cons exchanged looks and kept quiet. Casino appeared at the top of the stairs in his underwear and bandaged torso.

"Hey, Warden, that was my fault," he said taking the blame. "I just didn't feel like comin' down to answer the phone."

"You shouldn't have had to," growled Garrison. "She should have been here."

That wasn't fair to the girl. "Sorry, Warden," Casino said sarcastically. "We didn't know she was under house arrest."

Garrison glared at him and worked to simmer his temper. "Come on," he said to the men. "We might as well debrief while she's getting food."

Casino came down the stairs. The other three cons held back from following the lieutenant into his office.

"Bad mission again?" asked Casino.

"Naw," answered Chief. "Mission was fine. Bad debriefing."

"Yates?" guessed the safecracker.

"I don't think he likes us," said Carter smartly.

"Got that right, Mate," said Goniff.

They all headed into the office and took seats. Garrison was calmed down, but he frowned when Casino joined them.

"Okay, Carter," started Craig.

"Hold up, Warden," said Casino. "There's somethin' you need to know."

"You can tell me later." Garrison looked at his new conman.

"No, now!" said Casino bordering on anger. When Garrison looked back at him, he continued. "Sister got a phone call while you were gone. That Aussie guy, Royce, took a direct hit with flak. Nobody bothered to tell her until three days after they had services for him."

Garrison looked at him without speaking.

"Who is Royce?" asked Carter.

"RAF pilot," replied Chief.

Goniff added, "She was datin' 'im."

Garrison sighed. Now he understood and wished he hadn't yelled at her. "Okay, lets get this over with."

"Warden," Goniff said. "Just once you think we can go on a mission without you addin' another one on in the middle of it?"

"No, Goniff, I don't think we can. Carter."

"I don't care if you add on anything," said the con man, deliberately misinterpreting what the Warden was after. "Didn't bother me any. You were getting into the safe and I had more time to con the general."

Casino stared at Garrison in surpised delight. "You busted a safe? Without me?"

"No," answered Garrison. "Resistance gave me the combination." He wondered if he was ever going to get this debriefing done.

"Figures," grumbled Casino.

"Carter?" There was a hint of exasperation in the officer's voice.

The con man knew when to back down. "No problems. Once the general figured out I was his contact, he just let me handle it."

"Goniff."

"You took a couple more years off me life, Warden, when those officers walked by. And I still didn't get nuthin' to eat at that party," complained the pickpocket.

"You lived didn't you?" said Garrison with a hint of amusement. "Chief?"

The Indian shrugged, toying with his knife as usual. "For being the only resistance in Berlin," he said, "the cars were good and the safe house was okay."

Carter was wondering what was so important in that safe. "Lieutenant, did you get more out of that safe than what Gen. Hess had in his head."

"Yes," replied Garrison. "It will be very useful to the Allies."

Carter nodded. Then it was worth the gamble. He had come to learn about the Army officer's penchant for adding onto the missions. And usually what he added was more dangerous than the original mission.

Terry came to the open door and stopped. "There are sandwiches on the table for you guys when you're done."

"We're done," said Garrison. He didn't think he would get any more than those short answers from the men.

The men got up, including Casino, and headed for the dining room. Terry had backed out of the way and slowly began to follow them.

"Terry," called Garrison.

She stopped and stood a second before she turned back to him. Her face was closed. Garrison walked up to her.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly.

"So am I," said Terry. "I haven't been in a good mood lately."

He continued. "I'm sorry for yelling at you . . .and I'm sorry about Royce."

"Casino told you."

Garrison nodded. "Anything I can do?"

She shook her head. "I don't even think getting me drunk would help."

"Probably wouldn't be a good idea if we have to leave you alone with Casino again." A wicked twinkle lit the hazel blue-green eyes.

Terry gave a short laugh. "Trust me, I wouldn't jump Casino. And he isn't about to try anything with me." She changed the subject. "Did you bring me more salve for his back?"

"In my duffle."

"I'll get it. Go get a sandwich before they're all gone. I didn't make enough to feed Casino too. He had breakfast already."

GGGGG

Actor's life took on somewhat of a routine. Breakfast, morning exercise followed by card games, a walk around the yard, lunch, and a repeat. There was neither rhyme nor reason to when one of the men was called to the commandant's office. It seemed to be based on his whim or fancy. He must have fancied Actor because the Italian found himself spending more time in the office than the others, reciting Shakespeare, Ibsen, Tennyson, Frost, Kipling. Nationality did not matter any more to Col. Graf than it did to Actor.

One benefit was the confidence man known as Albero gained relief from the strain of the exercise. Actor continued to experience achy and sometimes sharp pain in his left lower ribs. He knew he was having intermittent fevers with chills too. He had a cough, but so did most of the other prisoners. The meals were sparse despite the seeming wealth displayed in the commandant's office. Actor lost more and more weight until it became weight he could not afford to lose. He needed to get out of there, but as yet he did not know how. He had no concern about getting himself across Germany. His goal would be Switzerland. Better to be in a neutral country where he had access to money.

A change in routine came toward the end of his first month in the camp. He was called into the commandant's office one morning. Graf seemed jubilantly excited.

"Ah, Herr Albero, come in, take a seat," said a smiling Graf.

Actor sat on the wooden chair before the desk, crossed his long legs and waited to see what the colonel had to say. The commandant took his seat and leaned back in the rich leather chair.

"I have the most marvelous news," he said. "There is a group of officers coming from Berlin to tour our _stalag_. They require dinner and entertainment before they return to Berlin. A traveling troupe has been contracted, shall we say, to come and provide readings of poetry. I am sure the officers would enjoy hearing your rich rendition of a Shakespearian sonnet."

Great, thought Actor, now I am the entertainment for the Reich. Already his mind was working at the possibilities this could present.

He looked down at his tattered clothing. "But Herr Colonel, I cannot be presented to such distinguished guests dressed as I am."

Graf waved a hand to stop him. "The troupe will bring costumes. They have been instructed to bring formal clothes for you."

"How considerate of you," said Actor, boosting the man already large ego.

"The troupe will arrive a couple days early to rehearse. You shall of course rehearse with them."

Actor nodded. "But where are we to hold this?"

"There is plenty of room in the barracks. We will relocate the prisoners in Barracks 6 to the other barracks. A stage and dressing room will be set up on one end of the empty building. It will be magnificent!"

Magnificent. Was he in some kind of nightmare, wondered Actor. This was too bizarre. A theater set up in a prison camp to entertain German officers with dinner and an imported troupe of entertainers. Still it had possibilities and not the kind the good Col. Graf had in mind.

GGGGG

Casino stayed at the mansion for a couple more weeks. Terry put salve on the wounds twice a day. The cuts healed but left scars she could do nothing about. The safecracker's back looked worse than tangling with barbed wire. Amazingly, the volatile man did not complain. At least not to the girl.

They moved into an easy friendship. Casino didn't believe for a minute the girl had anymore interest in him than she had in the others, but it was nice getting all of her attention for brief periods of time. As she did for the others, she cooked his favorite foods when she could get the ingredients. And she genuinely did not seem to mind taking care of him.

Just for fun, Terry began talking to him in Italian. Casino was amazed at how much of what he had known and heard at home came back to him. He was not anywhere near fluent in the language, but he could understand, ask, and answer basic questions. That gave him an edge over the others. Goniff flat butchered the language as much as he did English. Carter was picking up some of it. Chief seemed to have an easier time with German than Italian. And Garrison understood more than he spoke.

It was while the men were on another mission that Terry took Casino to the hospital in London for a checkup by the doctor who had originally dressed the wounds. As much as he liked the attention at home, Casino was getting antsy to get back to going on missions. He liked using his skills at the various safes he had to open. He also missed the camaraderie of the men. Maybe the doctor would clear him for missions again.

They sat in a small waiting room in the part of the hospital that held the offices. Casino seemed restless.

"You in pain?" asked Terry.

"Naw," replied the safecracker. "I just want to get this over with."

"Getting stir crazy at the mansion?" asked the girl with a grin.

"Startin' to," he admitted.

A nurse came down that hall and told him he could see the doctor now. Casino got up, but looked back when Terry stayed where she was.

"Come on," Casino said.

"You sure?" asked Terry.

"Asked yuh didn't I?"

Terry rose and they followed the nurse to an examination room. Casino perched on the exam table and Terry sat in a metal chair behind the door. The doctor entered a quarter of an hour later. He shut the door and gave the girl a frown.

"You can wait outside," he said brusquely.

"She's been takin' care of me all this time," said Casino. "She can stay."

Terry wasn't about to start a fight at this time. She chose her battles carefully. So she started to rise. The doctor shook his head and motioned her to remain sitting.

His nurse was busy, so Dr. Leeds took bandage scissors and cut the wrapped dressing up the safecracker's chest. Moving behind the man, Leeds did a careful examination of the wounds. He was surprised at how well healed they were. The edges were closed and the building scars were dark pink. They were starting to ridge up. He touched Casino's back in various places and moved the skin around. It gave, not freely, but not as board-stiff as he would have expected.

Leeds addressed the girl. "The skin is more pliable than I would have expected with just the salve."

"I tried to keep his moving so it wouldn't stiffen up," said Terry. "Is there anything I can do that will lessen the hypertrophy?"

Casino turned his head to stare at her with the use of that big technical term. The doctor looked at her also.

"Just continue to keep him moving. The scars will ridge up. They should flatten out over time. Time in years, Mr. Coletti."

"So when can I go back to work?" asked the safecracker.

"You jump out of airplanes, do you not?" asked the doctor.

"Yeah. So? How soon can I go back to jumpin' outta airplanes?" persisted Casino.

"I would give it another week," replied the physician. He turned back to the girl. "Can you keep him from returning to duty?"

Terry nodded. "He'll stay at the base," she replied, certain Craig would enforce it.

"I don't think the dressings are necessary anymore," Leeds said. "You can go, Mr. Coletti. Just keep moving. Your nurse has done a good job with your injuries."

"Yeah," said Casino with a grin. "She's pretty good at that."

GGG

Back at the Mansion, Casino went to his room and removed his shirt. He opened the door to his armoire and stood with his back to the mirror on the right door. Twisting his head, he could not get a clear view, but what he could see didn't look good to him. Terry was in her room, changing out of her good clothes to her everyday ones, so he yelled to her.

"Hey, Terr, you got a hand mirror or something so I can see this?"

"Yes, hold on," she called back.

A minute later, she entered his room, mirror in hand.

"I was wondering when you were going to ask to see it," she said.

He took the mirror from her and used it to see the reflection in the door mirror.

"Geez," breathed Casino. "I better not let Ma see that."

"It'll lighten up over time," said Terry, trying to be encouraging. "At the rate this war is going, it'll be white before your mother gets a chance to see it."

Casino moved the hand mirror around, studying the damage. "Wonder what the women will say."

Terry chuckled. "Well, Maggie at the Doves isn't exactly monogamous. I'd bet she's seen her share of scars. Just keep your back turned away from the others."

"They don't bother you, do they," he observed.

"I don't like you have them, but I've seen scars before, on all of you guys," said Terry. "My mother would have a fit if she saw me naked."

"How many more scars do you have now?" asked Casino, handing the mirror back to her and shutting the door of the armoire. "Wanna take your clothes off so I can see?" he asked lecherously.

"No," she smiled insincerely. "You've seen enough of me as it is, Babe. Good try though. Don't hold your breath."

"I bet Beautiful's seen all of yours," said the safecracker.

There was a slight loss of the twinkle in her eyes. "Most of them. And Beautiful isn't going to see any more of them now than you will." She turned and headed for the door. "What do you want for lunch?"

Casino could have kicked himself for bringing the con man up.


	7. Chapter 7

Expendable One

Chapter 7

Terry returned from her mission with Randy and his cons, to be informed by her brother she was to accompany them the next night. The mission was to Holland and she would be mistress to Carter. Garrison wondered at her lack of objection. Maybe she was finally getting over the loss of her partner. Somehow, he doubted it. More than likely she was getting as worn out as they were with the frequency of the missions. She was working two teams and Garrison was still going to Norway at least once a month. Of little consolation, with Actor gone the others were not expected to go in under Carter's and Terry's leadership. It gave them a small break.

GGGGG

The troupe arrived at the prison camp for rehearsal two days before the 'inspection'. They were billeted in a nearby town and brought in by transport truck every day. Props and trunks of clothes arrived with them the first day and remained securely guarded in the converted barracks. Actor was given clothes that fit loosely, but covered his tall frame and were of fairly good quality. There were black trousers, a white dress shirt, black vest, black shoes, and a long coat. Why the coat, he had no idea, but it fit nicely with the plan that he had concocted.

He practiced his solo recitation in the late mornings, and kept as far from the twenty people who were in the troupe as he dared. He did not want them to become too familiar with him, knowing he was a prisoner. The sonnet was one he was very familiar with and he had no difficulty reciting it from memory. Acting was exactly like conning. He adopted a different persona that helped the audience believe he was who he was pretending to be. He could get to like this, he thought.

The German entourage arrived mid-morning as expected. Actor stayed with his group of prisoners, remaining in the middle row when they were called out for inspection. He observed the ranks and was almost surprised there was no one lower than a major. After their barracks had been toured, they were allowed back inside with a guard to keep them there.

Over the usual lunch of watery soup and dry bread, the topic of conversation was the upcoming entertainment. The men were happy it was not them who had to perform in front of the upper echelon of the Reich. They expressed amazement that Albero seemed unaffected. It confirmed the man was either unconcerned or had nerves of steel.

After supper, Actor changed clothes in the barracks. He was happy to be rid of the worn garments he wore day after day. They had been powdered with bug killer, as had his bunk, the day before. To his unexpressed discomfort, but relief, he had been deloused at the same time. He had never been afflicted with the nasty little bugs in any of the prisons he had been incarcerated in, neither in Europe nor the United States. Itching all the time was an indignity he hoped never to experience again. Of course if he was caught in his escape attempt, he would be shot and that would take care of the disgusting things once and for all.

One of the guards came to the barracks door and escorted Albero to the 'dinner theater'. Actor gave no indication to the men he had lived with for a month that hopefully they would not see him again. With a touch of his old arrogance, Actor entered the side door of the temporarily remodeled Barracks #6. He slipped around behind the stage to the area that was silently being used for clothing and props changes. He lent a hand placing costumes in trunks and packing props as they were no longer being used. To some of the guards, he seemed to be one of the players. The tension was high and nobody seemed to have any curiosity of his presence.

His turn was called and he walked onto the stage as though he belonged there. His deep resonant voice, slightly over dramatic on purpose, gave life to the sonnet. Garrison would have teased him about overacting. At the finish, there was applause. Yes, he might enjoy doing this after the war.

Actor went behind the stage after taking a bow. He immediately helped load trunks and equipment into the back of one the transport truck. The trunks were stowed beneath one long bench along the left wall. Boxes of props were stowed under an identical bench on the opposite wall. The crew was in a hurry as there were only two acts after Albero's sonnet. When the performance ended, there was some minor chaos as the troupe finished packing and milled together under nervous guards waiting to be escorted to the truck.

The German officers left via the main door to the barracks. Graf bounced about, ingratiating himself with the officers who were no longer interested in him. They had seen what they had come for, been surprisingly, to them, well entertained, and well fed and abundantly 'watered.' The mood was jovial, but they were ready for the long ride back to Berlin.

The guards were on edge with all the high ranks around them. Their orders were to get the troupe out before the Reich's officers were ready to leave. Graf wanted them as far away as possible. So it was, the actors were herded like cattle into their truck. In the midst of the group was the sonnet reciter, Herr Albero. He moved toward the front and sat in the corner. The flap was lowered over the back. Actor kept his head bent as though tired, which he was.

With a rumble of the engine and the stench of diesel exhaust, the truck lurched forward and then crept to the gate. It came to a stop. The flap was lifted and a torch shown on the inhabitants. Actor managed to keep his face partially concealed by the man beside him. He waited, hardly daring to breathe. The moments seemed to creep slowly by. The light moved past him and along the faces on his side of the truck to the back. Satisfied, the guard lowered the flap and called for the gate to be opened. With another lurch, the truck passed through the gate and drove slowly away from the camp.

Once clear of the place, conversation picked up amongst the troupe. Actor kept silent, listening to the complaints of no pay and no choice in giving that evening's performance. It was a woman who blew his cover.

"You are Albero, aren't you?" she accused with humor. "You are the one who recited Shakespeare."

Silence filled the back of the truck as the other occupants bent forward or leaned back to stare at him in the dim light.

"My name is Hans Deitinger," said Actor in German, using one of his SS aliases.

The man beside him pulled a lighter from his coat pocket, flicked it to flame and held it up so they could see Actor's face.

The man gave a guffaw of laughter. "This is rich. Whatever your name is, you are still a prisoner from the camp. You are the first person to escape that place."

"Am I escaping?" asked Actor, "or will you turn me in?"

"Considering the Gestapo's high handed way with us," said a man on the opposite bench, "I say we help him escape. Serve the _schweinhunde_ right."

The man beside Actor shut his lighter, returning them to near darkness. "Are there any objections?" he asked. None were voiced. "So . . . Hans . . . do you have a destination in mind? By the way, my name is Karl."

"I have a destination," admitted Actor, not about to say where it was.

"I trust it does not include Berlin," said Karl in a slightly more serious tone.

"Preferably not."

"What about Mecklenheim?" another male voice suggested.

Karl addressed Actor. "In another hour we will pass through a town with a crossroads. It would be no problem for our driver to let you depart outside of the town."

"That would be appreciated," acknowledge Actor.

"You were a prisoner," said the same woman who had recognized him. "Do you have any money?"

"Of course he doesn't," said still another male voice. "There is also a train depot in the town. Do we have enough money among us for him to purchase a ticket?"

"That is not necessary," objected Actor. He was not one to accept charity.

"Nonsense," said the woman.

A hat was passed around the inside of the truck. Karl lit his lighter again and counted the take before handing it to the con man.

"This will at least get you out of the area," he said. "But what will you do for papers?"

"I will find a way," said Actor. He accepted the money reluctantly. "I . . . thank you," he said, knowing this was probably a hardship for some of them.

"It is our pleasure," assured Karl. There were sounds of agreement from the others.

GGGGG

The mission had gone without a hitch for once. They had gone in, Carter had dispensed false information to the designated general at the party. Terry had been more of her vivacious self and managed to gain information from another general. Now they were in the belly of a British plane that seated 6 uncomfortably, but had a short landing distance.

"Okay," said Terry. "Who told Carter I like cavier?"

"Me, Love," replied Goniff cockily. "You never seem to get any anymore."

Even Garrison was in a better mood. "Would you guys quit encouraging her. She isn't going to get that back at the ranch after the war."

Terry laughed. "Why do you think I'm snarfing it down whenever I can get it?"

Casino looked at the Limey sitting next to Carter. "Did you get enough to eat this time?"

"Now an' I never get enough to eat," complained the pickpocket pathetically. "But it was a good knosh this time."

Everybody laughed.

It wasn't until they were back at the Mansion that Garrison got a chance to talk to his sister in private. The men were outside taking advantage of a warm clear day to play some ball. Craig had his window open to catch a faint cool breeze as he wrote up his report. Terry was lying on his couch, reading a book.

"You seem to be doing better," broached the lieutenant carefully.

The girl didn't look at him. "Don't believe it for a minute," she said. "I just had a good teacher at the con."

"You ever going to get over Actor?"

Craig did not know just how close the two had become, but he knew there was a connection between the them.

"Nope," she replied, just as matter-of-factly. "Are you?"

Garrison looked at her startled. He thought about how much he had come to rely on the Italian. He missed their private chats, the backup he had received, the things that had been subtly taught to him by the master confidence man and the camaraderie in coming up with a con on the missions . "No," he answered quietly.

Now Terry looked at him. "Change the subject."

"What's for dinner?"

Terry rolled her eyes. "Now you sound like Goniff."

GGG

The moon was full and the nights clear. It kept them from being sent in by plane and there were no missions along the coast for sub transport. They all enjoyed the down time. Terry went back to work tending bar at the Fox and the men alternated between there and The Doves.

A front started to move in so they knew their rest was going to come to an end shortly. It also meant the Luftwaffe could make more bombing raids. They were fairly safe at the Mansion, but London was getting blasted again.

There was a break in the cloud cover at sunset and Terry went out to stand on the steps and watch the sky. There was a squiggly mass of white curvy lines that caught the sunset and turned a pink/orange color. It would have been beautiful if she hadn't known what the lines were from. She had asked Craig the first time she saw them. He had explained they were con trails of Allied fighters attacking German bombers.

Casino came out and looked up to see what the girl was gazing at.

"RAF is getting a workout today," he remarked.

"I would bet some of the fighters are from Archbury too," added Terry.

Garrison joined them and watched the lines swirl around and in and out. "Funny the Jerries are making a bombing raid into the sun. Makes it hard for them to see and easier for our fighters to pick them off."

"Yeah," said Casino. "Well I hope they pick all of 'em off."

It wasn't the last raid of the night. Later, in the wee hours of the morning, London was hit again. If the Germans could fly to England that meant a plane from England could go over to the Continent. In the morning, Garrison sat at his desk, sipping coffee, smoking a cigarette and working on more intel. Mostly he waited for the call that told him there was a mission scheduled.

The phone rang and Craig answered it, expecting G-2 or one of the officers. "Lt. Garrison."

"Craig?" The voice had a fine tremor to it. "I'm at the rail station. Can someone come get me? I need to stay with you for awhile."

"Chris? Are you all right?" Craig was concerned with the sound of her voice.

"Not really," she replied.

"Were you in that bombing raid last night in London?" demanded Craig with fear.

"Yes."

"Chris!"

That was heard in the common room. The men looked up at the tone of Garrison's voice.

"Are you hurt?" he asked.

"No, but I lost everything. There's nothing left of the flat. Not even a wall," she said tearily.

"Where's Kelly?"

Chris swallowed and gained control of herself. "He and the boys are in Holland."

"Okay, Baby, we'll get you right away."

"Thanks, Craig."

Garrison went to his door and in an uncharacteristic act for the army officer yelled for his middle sister.

"Warden, did something 'appen to Chris?" asked Goniff.

Terry appeared at the top of the stairs and peered down. "What's the matter?"

Garrison answered both of them. "Chris's place got bombed last night. She's not hurt, but she lost the flat. She's at the train station. Can you go get her? I'm waiting for a call from the Brass."

"Sure." Terry bounded down the stairs and grabbed the keys to the Packard. She paused and looked at Chief. "Uh, Chief, could you come along? I might need you to drive back. She'll probably need some sisterly attention."

"If it's okay with the Warden?" said Chief uncertainly.

"Fine. I'd appreciate it," said Garrison.

Terry and the Indian went out the front door and down the steps.

"That was pushin' it, wasn't it?" asked Chief, crossing to the passenger door of the Packard.

"It worked," shrugged Terry. "More likely she'll need you more than me."

Terry went to the driver's door and Chief paused at the passenger door. "That don't bother you?" he asked.

Terry looked askance at him over the top of the car. "No, that don't bother me," she parroted back. "Get in the car." They both got in. "What am I, your friggin' fairy godmother," teased Terry.

Chief grinned back at her. "We need one."

Terry gave an unladylike snort and started the car. Luckily Chief wasn't afraid of her driving.

The young Indian allowed Terry to take the lead into the train depot, staying a few steps back. The older girl spotted her sister and ran to embrace her.

"You okay?" asked Terry worriedly as Chris burst into tears.

The younger girl nodded. "We lost old Mrs. Weatherly. She never got out."

Terry swore softly. She hugged and rocked her sister. "Hey," she whispered. "I brought somebody for you to cry on."

Chris turned a tear streaked face up. Terry nodded with her head toward the young man. Chris looked over to see Chief standing a few yards back, watching with a worried look on his face.

The younger girl looked up at her sister. "Craig?" she asked cautiously.

"He's at the mansion. Go on." Terry gave her a little nudge.

Chris took a couple tentative steps forward. Both she and Chief looked at Terry. The older girl looked at them with exasperation and made a shooing motion with both hands. What was she going to have to do, take them both by the hand? This fairy godmother role was something else.

Chris took a couple more steps forward and ran into Chief's open arms. The strong arms closed protectively around her and she buried herself in his chest. He hugged her as tightly to him as she was hugging him.

Terry stayed back and watched them. She sure hoped they made it through the war. Even if they didn't know it, she knew beyond a doubt she would have Chief for a brother-in-law. She just might have to push that one too.

The older girl did the driving back to the mansion and took her time. The two in the back were glued to each other. Reluctantly, she pulled over to the side of the road just before reaching the turn to the house.

"Switch drivers," she said.

The two in the back exchanged a long kiss as Terry waited outside the car, leaning against the fender. Finally Chief emerged.

"Thanks," he said with embarrassment.

Terry grinned. "That's what big sisters and fairy godmothers are for," she quipped.

She got in the back and Chief climbed behind the wheel.

Garrison was waiting for them outside his office. He held his arms open and Chris ran to him for a brotherly hug.

"You sure you're okay?" he asked.

Crystal nodded. "I got to the shelter. Mrs. Weatherly didn't make it. I thought she was ahead of me." She looked glassily up at her brother. "I thought we had time. I got dressed and grabbed my purse. It's all I took. I thought she would have been in the shelter by then. When I got there she wasn't and the bombs were falling. I couldn't go back for her." She shook her head. "How many raids have we been through and never even got a broken window?"

"You should be safer here," said Craig soothingly. "We'll have to figure this out later. We have a mission."

"Naturally," said Terry. "It's going to storm soon."

"That's why we're leaving in an hour." Garrison turned to his scout. "I'll brief you on the plane."

"Crap," said Terry. "Okay, let me throw some sandwiches together. You can eat on the way or on the plane."

GGG

It was after the chaos of getting the guys out quickly the two girls had a chance to sit down and talk.

"What now?" asked Chris.

"I don't know," admitted Terry.

"I'll sleep in Craig's room until they get back," offered the younger girl.

Terry shook her head. "No, you take my room. I'll sleep in Actor's room. Craig doesn't have to know. I have to wash sheets before they get back anyway."

Chris nodded. She studied her older sister. "I've been thinking. You were a lot closer to Actor than Rainey and I are. I don't know what I would do if something happened to him. And I don't know how you deal with not knowing what has happened to Actor."

"I try not to think about it," said Terry. She got up and headed back to the kitchen. She didn't want to talk about it either. Not even with Chris.

The next morning, Terry carried on as though she hadn't spent the night in the con man's bed. Alone. Again. The phone rang and she answered it.

"Terry! Where's Crystal!"

"Kelly? Are you alright?" asked Terry worriedly.

"Yes. Is she? We were told the flat isn't there anymore." The youngest of the Garrison's sounded very worried.

"It isn't according to Chris." Terry put her hand over the receiver and yelled for her sister. "Where are you?"

"Can't tell you," he replied. "SOE told us the place had been bombed."

Christine appeared at the top of the stairs, rapidly trying to braid her hair into a ponytail. Terry held the phone out to her.

"It's Kell."

Chris let go of her hair and ran down the steps to take the phone. Knowing the boys were okay, Terry left Chris to talk with their brother. She went upstairs to start stripping beds.


	8. Chapter 8

Expendable One

Chapter 8

The tall man with the dark mustache and Van Dyke beard stood at the entrance to a narrow, dark alley and watched the foot traffic in and out of a bar across the street. He needed the uniform of at least an SS major. Unfortunately the officers did not seem to be imbibing tonight.

He wandered down the street with the unsteady gait of an inebriate that was not entirely faked. His chest hurt and he was tired. A laundry was in the middle of the next block. Luck was on his side as an alley ran behind the establishment. After a slow glance around to make sure he was not being observed, Actor disappeared down the dirty alley past garbage bins and piles of boxes.

Square panes of glass filled the upper half of the back door to the laundry. The area had no flats or residences and there was no noise to indicate anyone was working close by. Actor drew back his arm and hit the lowest pane above the door knob with his coat covered elbow. Even before the tinkle of broken glass hitting the floor ended, he was already inside the shop. Carefully, he broke the rest of the glass out of the pane so the break was not as noticeable.

Heavy woolen military jackets on coat hangers hung from an upper pole. Actor searched for one that fit him. It was taken from its hanger and laid aside. He grabbed jackets from both sides of that one and placed them in another pile. The search was repeated for pants and a white blouse. He quickly changed into the uniform and placed his 'costume' in a nearby bag. Draping the uniforms from the pile over his arm and taking the bag, Actor slipped out the back door, locked it, and closed it.

Moving down the alley, he dumped the uniforms into a trash bin. Two blocks further brought him to a cobbler's shop where he found boots that actually fit him. His shoes went into the bag with his clothes and he shoved his feet into the shiny black jack boots. With a smile, he took a few more pair of boots and deposited them in another trash bin.

A hapless officer had left his hat in the staff car he was using. The driver had disappeared. The hat went on Actor's head. It was a little small, but it would do.

Actor's headed for the train station. Along the way, he broke into another shop and purloined a leather bag into which he transferred his clothes. It was a good thing he had accompanied Goniff on occasion in the past and watched how the little pickpocket had gone about obtaining uniforms for all of them. The con man continued on to the train station.

This was apparently a major north/south route as the ticket office was open and manned by a sole sleepy man. Actor purchased a ticket going to a town on the Swiss border. The train was scheduled to arrive at 3 am. The con man fervently hoped the RAF and Eighth Air Force would not be making a bombing run to destroy the tracks before he could reach the border.

Tucking his ticket inside his jacket, Actor went back outside and found a place in the midst of some trees where he could wait the four hours until the train came without being seen. Luckily, it was not a cold night and he was wearing the warm woolen uniform.

GGG

Sitting by himself in the compartment, Actor contemplated the people from the acting troupe who had helped him. They had gone out of their way to assist his escape with no thought for themselves. He hoped they had not been caught before making it back to Berlin. Actor wondered when he had become concerned about the people he was conning. It was so unlike how he had been prior to the war. It was Teresa's fault. She had subtly guided the part of him he had kept hidden into the open. Damn Teresa. That was not all she had done. She still slid, unbidden, into his sleep at night, leaving him hungry in a carnal way, though truthfully it was not just that. He had enjoyed her company. She was intelligent and he could converse with her on any number of subjects. She professed liking his company, yet wanted nothing in return; no gifts, money, and especially not clothes. Strange woman. Unlike anyone he had ever known. Even the wealthy women he had squired wanted something from him; usually the things Teresa did not.

As the train pulled away from the station, Actor leaned his head into the corner of the seat and the wall. He slowed his breathing and pretended to be asleep. Last minute riders entered the compartment and took seats. He feigned sleep and listened to the muted conversation of the German officers. Nothing was said about looking for a missing prisoner.

Sometime later, the conductor opened the door of the compartment. The other officers handed him their tickets and papers. Actor continued to pretend he was sleeping. The conductor made a remark about the sleeping man. One of the officers told him to leave the man alone. He did not look well and they just as soon left him to sleep instead of breathing on them.

Actor departed the train at the last stop before the Swiss border. The sun had disappeared again behind snow covered peaks. He strode into the restroom and locked himself inside a stall. Quickly he removed his civilian clothes from the bag he carried. The German uniform was removed and stuffed inside the now empty bag. It was a shame about the boots, but they were not in keeping with the rest of the clothing. The mustache and beard were stuffed into one of the boots. He donned the clothes, grateful for the long coat, and left the restroom. The bag of clothing was deposited in a trash bin around the side of the building.

He walked away from the depot as if he had a destination in mind. When the area cleared of people, he disappeared into the trees and made his way stealthily back to the rail yard. Finding a stockpile of 50 gallon drums, he crouched out of sight and watched the activity around the trains.

It would be dangerous, but he could think of no other way to cross the border without papers or a ticket. The underside of the train cars would be checked just prior to the train leaving. In that short period of time, he would have to get across the open areas between the tracks, under a car, and find a place to hang onto under the car. He had done that once before on a mission. It was not his preferred way to travel.

It was another twenty minutes before the armed guards with their dogs began searching the train he had been on for escapees trying to cross the border to freedom. The dogs growled and barked, staining at their leashes as they tried to get beneath one of the train cars. Amazingly, they found a skeleton of a man clinging to the bottom of one of the cars. He was dragged out, clubbed with a rifle stock and dragged away. Glancing around, Actor made his move. They had checked that car and would not check it again. He slid under the car and lay on the tracks. The wooden ties were painful on his thinly covered spine. He grabbed a crossbar and pulled himself up, barely stifling a gasp at the pain which shot through his left ribs. Fighting to ignore it, he slipped his legs over two closely spaced crossbars and levered himself up, wedging his legs far enough into the space to keep his body from sagging at the hips. He wrapped his arms around the metal bars and lifted his torso into a space tight against the bottom of the car. The pain in his chest was a hair under excruciating. Actor wondered if he could hold on long enough for the train to cross into the Switzerland and stop at a town so he could get off. The alternative was not a pleasant way to die.

GGGGG

Garrison and the men returned two mornings after they had left. After a call notifying her of their return, Terry had breakfast ready for them. Her sister watched the routine and carefully avoided looking at Chief. Chris noticed that Carter was the only one who thanked Terry for the meal. However, Casino hung back and looked hopefully at Terry.

"Uh, Babe . . ."

Terry nodded. "You want it upstairs or down here?"

"Here's fine," said the safecracker. "You're busy."

"Okay. Take a seat."

Casino flipped one of the chairs around and started to unbutton his shirt. He realized Chris was still there and stopped in mid button.

"Just leave your singlet on," said Terry. Even she wasn't sure how her sister would react to the sight of the man's back.

Casino draped his shirt over the back of the chair and straddled it. Chris saw the dark pink ridges that peeked out around the straps over his shoulders.

"What happened?" she asked softly.

"Gestapo," said Terry shortly.

The older girl began the ritual of massaging the tight muscles and the scarred skin on the man's back. They had discovered that her working his back kept the scars from tightening up too much. Casino never gave a sign of pain, but she wondered if they still hurt. She rubbed and kneaded and massaged for almost ten minutes. When she quit, he stood up and put his shirt back on without buttoning it.

"Better?" asked Terry.

Casino nodded. He leaned in and kissed her cheek. "Thanks, Babe."

Terry smiled. "Anytime."

Chris waited for the man to go upstairs before addressing her sister. "Uh, Terry? He kissed you."

"Yes," said the girl absently. "They all do now. Except Chief. He's not the kissy feely type."

Chris wasn't sure what to make of any of that. The only one she had seen kiss Terry before was Actor and that had seemed to be part of the game they played. Now she wasn't so sure and not about to question it anymore.

"Is his whole back like that?" she asked instead.

"Yes," said Terry with a sigh. "It was a mess."

"Will the scars go away?" Chris asked.

"They'll lighten up, but, no, they won't go away."

"Poor man."

Terry smiled at her kid sister. Chris should have been the nurse. If anything or anybody was hurt, she felt bad for them and tried to help in any way she could. The girls cleared the table and put the dishes in a sink of hot sudsy water to soak.

Garrison, looking tired and drawn, appeared at the kitchen door. "I want to talk to both of you before I go upstairs. Come into my office."

He turned and walked in that direction. The two girls looked exchanged a look, each thinking this was not going to be fun.

Craig sat and contemplated his two sisters. This was going to be a problem. A big one with Terry. He looked at his middle sister.

"This has got to stop," he said more firmly than he felt. "You have got to clean out Actor's bedroom. Box up his belongings and we will store them until we find out who his next of kin is." He fixed Terry with a hard glare, "And I trust you know who that is."

Terry clinched her teeth and took some breaths to control her anger. "I know he has kin. I don't know who and I don't know where exactly."

Garrison gave her a look of disbelief.

"He has a cousin somewhere in Italy. I don't know the cousin's name or his exact location," said Terry stubbornly.

She did not know if the Masons even had that information and she wasn't about to bring that up with her brother. To box up the con man's belongings meant acceptance he was dead. And until she had proof, she would not accept that.

"We'll move Carter into Actor's room and give Chris his."

Chris spoke up. "Craig, I don't want to stay here. I need to get a job. I can handle that better in Brandonshire." She turned to Terry. "Would it be alright if I moved into your flat?"

Terry nodded. "I'm sure you can tend bar at the Fox. I don't seem to get there that much now."

Garrison did not like that idea, but it was better than her staying at the Mansion. "What about Kelly?"

"I talked to him and the boys," said Chris. "They are going to stay with Auntie full time. She was so appreciative of their taking care of her that she gave them a place to stay. And before you ask, I don't know where that is."

Great, thought Garrison. Now he had his little sister to worry about and he had no idea where his kid brother was again. For that matter, he did not know who Kelly was working for. He knew 'Auntie' was a code word, but not for what organization.

"Just who is 'Auntie'?" he asked.

Chris shot a look at her sister.

Terry shrugged. "He's got enough clearance."

"SOE."

That was what the lieutenant had figured. "What about you? Are you still working for them?" Please let it be a no.

"Occasionally," admitted the younger girl.

"Craig, go get some sleep," said Terry. "I'll take Chris into Brandonshire and get her settled in my flat." She turned to her sister. "Can you ride the motorcycle?"

Chris smiled insincerely. "If it has wheels I can ride it or drive it."

Craig thought about objecting to that, but decided it wouldn't make any difference. The girls would do what they wanted, with or without his blessing. He just shook his head and got up from his desk. Without another word to them, he left his office.

GGG

Christine had been in her sister's flat once, a long time before. It wasn't that different from what hers had been like, with wooden bookcases full of all manner of books. She followed Terry into the hall and looked into the spare bedroom. It was not frilly, but that suited her.

"Take what you need from my armoire," said Terry. "We'll get some clothes for you later."

Chris nodded and walked into her new bedroom. She pushed down on the white chenille bedspread. The mattress was just the right firmness, but something didn't feel right about the bedclothes. She pulled the covers back and stared with raised eyebrows, fingers reaching out to trail across the bottom sheet.

"Terry?" she called to her sister. "This bed has satin sheets."

"Yup," said the older girl.

"Does yours too?"

"Yup."

Terry came to stand in the doorway. "Don't worry, after the first night of feeling like you're going to slide out on the floor, you get used to it."

Chris contemplated the implications of bedclothes her sister could neither afford nor even think of buying. There was only one person who would have indulged in that extravagance.

"Does he have a key?" the younger girl asked.

Terry hesitated. The girl would find out at some point. "Yes."

"He's stayed here?" Crystal asked in a mix of disbelief and delight.

"He did once in awhile," admitted Terry. "Mostly he came here to get away from the others for a couple hours."

"Does Craig know?"

"About the sheets? Yes. He's slept on them. About the living arrangements? I don't know."

"How did you manage to sneak away together without Craig finding out?" probed the younger girl.

"We didn't," said Terry firmly. "We only overlapped once and he went back to the mansion."

In a way, the younger sister was disappointed. Actor seemed to be good to Terry. After the mess with Jake in New York, Terry needed someone to treat her well.

Terry sighed. "I'm going back to the mansion. If you need anything, call me." She reached in her pocket and pulled out some money, holding it out to the girl. "There's some food here. The stores are one block over and down two. Same street the Fox is on. Kit and Shiv live across the hall."

"I'll be fine," assured Chris. "Thanks, Terr."

The older girl nodded and headed for the door. She stopped and turned back. "Oh, and that huge building across from the Fox is G-2. Just thought you should know that."

More things to contemplate, thought Chris.

GGGGG

The ride across the border took a half hour. There was no border stop as the train had been searched by the Wehrmacht at the last town in Germany and papers had been checked thoroughly as it had been boarded. Still, that half hour was the longest one Actor could remember ever spending. The long coat had been buttoned to the bottom and wrapped as tightly around him as possible. He was cold and in a lot of pain. The clack of the wheels on the rails, a sound he usually found soothing, was deafening when his ears were mere inches from it. It took all of the little stamina he had left for Actor to hang on.

The train slowed and came to a halt in the station of the first town inside the Swiss border. Actor immediately released his grip on the undercarriage of the car and forced himself to roll clear on the side away from the depot. He pushed cramped muscles to climb up the steps at the back of the car and stand to lean against the wall with an unlit cigarette in his hand, as though he had been there when they stopped.

He allowed most of the passengers to depart, moving between two men with a smile and thank you in Swiss/German. Melting in with the crowd, he walked through the depot and out the other side. The sky was black, but there were lights around the depot. With the tall peaks around the town, it would be many hours yet before dawn and longer still until it became light. No papers, no money, and no ticket ended his train ride. It was 51 km from Schaffenhaus, where he was, to Zurich. Walking was out of the question. His body gave an uncontrollable shiver. He had to find shelter or a way to Zurich. Resolutely, Actor began walking toward the center of the town.

He had not gone far before he spotted a dilapidated truck. The paint had mostly been replaced by rust. It seemed to be a farm truck of some kind. A sign on the door had a Zurich address . Tall, lopsided wooden sides were barely held together by a wooden door with a slide bar latch. Looking around, Actor did not see anyone. He opened the door and peered inside. There was no top covering the back, but there was a pile of burlap bags in the far corner. He could not afford to be choosy about his accommodations and climbed in the back. There was a hole in the door that allowed him to work the slide shut. Actor scrambled over to the burlap bags and huddled in the corner, covering himself to hide and to try to gain some warmth.

He became aware again when the truck was moving. Actor did not know if he had fallen asleep or had lost consciousness. All he could do was hug himself tightly under the thin cover of the burlap and hope the truck was going to Zurich.

A half hour later, the truck pulled to the side of the road and stopped, engine still running. The driver's door opened and closed. Actor peered through a small gap between the boards of the side of the truck. The driver, a squat solid man in rough clothing, was walking across the road to a car that was parked on the other side. A man Actor could not see well in the dim light got out of the car. Money was exchanged for a medium sized box. The driver turned and walked back to the truck, while the car drove away.

The con man tried to cover himself completely with the sacks. He listened to the bar slide back and the door open. The man heaved himself up with a grunt and walked to the front of the truck to lay the box against the back of the vehicle. Actor held his breath. A foot prodded him in the hip and the sacks were pulled away.

The two men exchanged silent looks.

"Zurich?" asked the driver.

Actor nodded.

"You will be warmer in the cab. Come." The voice was resigned and unsurprised.

Actor rose to his feet with difficulty and followed the other man to the end of the truck. He sat down and slid off the bed to his feet on the ground. The driver left him and went around on the road side. Not about to be left behind, the con man went along the dirt strip on the shoulder of the road and climbed into the cab.

The man said nothing and pulled back onto the road. The cab was warm and a blanket was shoved across the seat to the Italian. Actor wrapped himself in the blanket and tried to stay awake, but soon was asleep.

Sometime later, a hand on his arm roughly shook him awake. They were in the city. It was an area of restaurants, nightclubs, and casinos. They were across from a restaurant and Actor spotted a man disappearing into the eatery carrying a box that strongly resembled the one in the back of the truck. The driver motioned Actor to get out.

Actor thanked him in German/Swiss and opened the door with a creak of rusty hinges. He got out and watched the truck drive away. Smells of cooked food assailed his nostrils and caused his empty belly to tighten. No money, no food. He was not desperate enough to scavenge from the dumpsters in the alley behind the restaurant.

With a deep breath, the con man started walking down the street, weaving around well dressed people in couples and small groups. He did not know where he was going, but he kept walking. It would be many hours yet before the banks opened and he could access money from his numbered accounts with his passwords and codes.

As he walked slowly down past the clubs and casinos, he looked around to get his bearings. Finally he came to an area he was vague familiar with. He was a mile from a bank he had two accounts in. As he recalled, a park was a half block from the building. Resigned to another night in the open, he walked down the sidewalk, hands tucked into the pockets of the long coat.

A high-pitched squeal of feminine laughter drew his eyes to a young woman sporting a fur coat hanging onto the arm of a tuxedoed man. They had come out of a casino and the woman was escorted to the back door of a taxi. She and the man got in and the taxi pulled away. Actor looked at the lighted name over the revolving doors of the casino and stared. Bernardo's. No. It could not possibly be the same Bernardo, could it? Actor did not know where in Switzerland the casino owner and the Duchess had gone to. Curious, the con man walked across the street pausing and dodging cars that were not about to stop for a pedestrian.

He walked up to the door man with a smile and said he was looking for an old friend from the French Riviera who had moved to Switzerland. He described the short gray grizzled man with the big black rimmed glasses and the classy blonde woman. Ah, yes, that would be the owner of the casino and his wife. Wife? So she had married the man. Would the owner be here? Alas, no. He went home at 1 am to be with his younger wife. With more small talk, Actor was able to get the address and directions from the doorman. The suite Bernardo owned was just around the corner. Actor thanked the man with a smile and went on down the street.

GGG

Actor stood in front of the door to suite 304 and put a hand against the wall to steady himself. He hadn't eaten in three days, his breathing was labored from the persistent pain in his left ribs and he alternately felt hot and cold. He did not know what kind of reception he would receive here. Bernardo had every right to refuse him and to call the _polizei_ on him. As for Duchess, she truly belonged to Garrison and neither Bernardo nor Actor.

Drawing on the last of his reserves, Actor straightened, put a smile on his face and knocked on the door. He was about to knock again, when the door opened to reveal the Duchess in dressing gown peeking around at him. Judging by the arm that was hidden behind her, she was holding a gun.

Katherine recognized the tall, aristocratic man and stared. He did not look so aristocratic now. In fact, he looked ill. She opened the door wider and motioned him to enter. He moved past her and she shut and bolted the door behind him.

"Actor? What are you doing here?" she asked with concern.

"I apologize for the intrusion," said the con man with a smile. "I am afraid I am in need of your assistance."

As she stared at him, his eyes rolled back in his head and he crumpled to the floor.

"Bernardo!" she called urgently.


	9. Chapter 9

The Expendable One

Chapter 9

Life at the mansion went on. Chris stayed in Brandonshire and Garrison never knew when she was there or off on a mission with SOE. She had picked up tending bar on occasion, freeing up her sister. If Terry wasn't on a mission with Garrison's group, she was going in with Lt. Johnson's or some unknown, unmentioned group.

Carter was finally easing into the group. The cons accepted him for himself, but there would always be a sense of loss of the big Italian confidence man. Though they never gave up asking resistance and anyone else they could think of, there was no word on Actor. The army was of the opinion he was dead. The parole, of course, would never happen, so now Garrison pushed for a full pardon. Between red tape, slow bureaucracy, and the fact that his men were not liked, the war would be long over before the man received one. And the Italian's bedroom remained untouched except for a dusting.

GGG

Chief sat in the window and watched the military car drive up and stop in the car park. The corporal got out quickly and ran around to open the back passenger door. He held a hand out in an offer of help that was ignored by the passenger. The woman climbed stiffly out. Her left arm was in a clean white sling.

"Warden, it's Terry! She got hurt again."

"Not again," thought Garrison in a mix of exasperation and fear.

He took one last drag off his cigarette and tamped it out in the ashtray that was already full of butts. By the time he got to his door, the front door was opening. The girl walked inside and shut the door behind her. Garrison took in the filthy hair and dark circles under his sister's eyes. Her countenance was tired and disgusted.

"How bad?" asked Craig.

She gave a half-hearted laugh. "Believe it or not, it hit the same scar from last year." She looked at the male faces that were silently watching her. Casino's gaze was the most intense. Goniff looked worried, Carter looked questioning, and Chief looked like Chief. She addressed the Indian. "The car gone?"

Chief glanced out the window. "Leavin' now."

Terry nodded and pulled her arm from the sling, removed the annoying thing from around her neck and tossed it to Casino. She flexed her fingers and turned her wrist. "The doctor wants me to keep it still and not use it for anything for the next couple days."

They could all see how long that was going to last.

Carter got up out of Actor's chair and motioned the girl over. "Here, have a seat."

Terry did not object, but walked past her brother and took the offered seat. Carter took one of the high backed table chairs and turned it so he could see her.

"Okay," said Garrison. "What happened this time?"

Terry made a face of mixed disgust and something else. "He stuttered one time too many. Whole thing went to hell. Randy's in the base hospital with a bullet in his belly. They took him to surgery. He'll make it. The other two are in barracks on the base."

"And your con man?" Garrison had a mental block with the man's name other than it was an animal.

"Hopefully the Krauts buried his body somewhere."

"He's dead?" asked Casino in surprise.

"Very," confirmed Terry. "Took one right between the eyes." She took a cigarette from Carter's pack that was on the side table and lit it, inhaling deeply. At least the man smoked Lucky Strikes and not Players. "Only good thing from this is I don't have to go in with them again for a long time."

"Are they disbanding?" asked Garrison. It had been a worry to him about their group when they had lost Actor.

Terry shook her head. "No, but Randy is going to be out of action for a month at the least. And then they have to get him a new con man." She glanced at Carter with a smile. "We've gotten the two best so far. That may be a problem."

"Do you have to debrief?" asked Garrison. He wasn't about to allow her to drive herself. That would be his job this time.

"No." She looked up sourly. "Major Johns was in his usual fine form. Tried to blame me and Randy for it." She grinned evilly. "I told his lieutenant to call Gen. Eisenhower."

That brought a burst of laughter from the men. They had no doubt she would have pulled a bluff like that. Garrison was the only one who knew it might not have been a bluff. His sister had 'friends' in high places. How high made him shake his head. He wondered what all she had been doing in the year she had spent in Washington besides taking care of their father. Rank around here held no awe for her. Craig went back into his office. Terry finished her cigarette and got up. She appeared in Craig's doorway.

"Wake me up around four-ish so I can cook," she said.

Garrison looked at the worn countenance. "We'll cook. Just sleep."

Terry's eyebrow rose. "I haven't eaten much of anything in the past couple days. I'll cook if you don't mind."

Garrison grinned and nodded. He knew she hated it when Casino messed up her kitchen and she couldn't identify what was in the 'surprise' Goniff threw together. Carter didn't cook and Chief's cooking was confined to outdoors. Craig stayed out of the kitchen; that's what he had a mother and sisters for.

GGGGG

Bernardo stood in the doorway of the spare bedroom. He silently observed his wife and the physician who were on either side of the man in the bed. He had recognized the man passed out on his floor as one of the men who had torched his casino in Nice. Duchess, he still thought of her by that name, had insisted they get the man into a bed and call a private physician who would ask no questions and charge a small fortune for his services. Duchess always got her way.

Now the woman watched the doctor pull the covers up over the Italian man's chest. Actor had not regained consciousness. Heat poured off him and his breathing was labored. Katherine had been shocked at the ribs that showed and the thinness of the man.

"He has been shot in the chest," said the dark-haired doctor with the Germanic accent. "It seems to have broken a rib. Someone had a chest tube in him at some point. His lower lung is full of pneumonia. You will need to try to keep the fever at bay and get fluids in him when he comes to."

"He is so thin," remarked Duchess.

The doctor put his stethoscope into his well worn leather satchel. "I would not be surprised if he has not spent time in a prison camp."

"Will he live?" asked Bernardo.

"Hopefully," said the physician. "It will take much attention on your part. I will check in daily. If he gets worse, call me."

He removed a bottle of white tablets from his bag and handed them to the woman.

"If he awakens, give him one of these four times a day. They are antibiotic," he said anticipating the question.

Bernardo followed the doctor from the room and paid him handsomely in cash for his time and services. All this for a man he should hate and turn over to the police. But, other than passing out on their living room floor, the man had done nothing to warrant arrest here in Switzerland. After locking the front door behind the physician, the older man went back to the bedroom. Duchess had a damp cloth and was wiping their house guest's face with it. She folded it and draped it across Actor's forehead.

"Come to bed, Duchess," said Bernardo.

The woman shook her head. "You heard what the doctor said. We have to keep his fever down. I will stay with him and try to cool him down."

With a sigh and look of disgust that was not seen by his wife, Bernardo left her and went back to bed.

Katherine got a basin of cool water and another cloth. She sat on the side of the bed, beside Actor, and changed the cloths on his forehead frequently. She was worried, not about Actor, but about Craig. If this had occurred on a mission, then what had happened to Craig? Had he been wounded, or worse, was he dead? The only way she would know was if this man awakened and told her. No, she wasn't leaving Actor.

Memories of that mission at Duclos' casino inserted themselves in her mind. Darling Craig had pulled her from a prison in New York with the understanding that at the end of the mission, she would be able to sneak away and go to Switzerland. The man on the bed had been a wonderful partner in the con. They had played very well off each other. He had proven his reputation was warranted. Oh, Actor had been persistent at first in wanting to set up a 'relationship' with her. If Craig had not been there, she would have been tempted to seek his bed if nothing else: he was a handsome man, when he wasn't looking like a skeleton. Somewhere along the line, the master confidence man had given up on making her a long term partner. She did not know why, nor had she particularly cared.

Bernardo had been her money ticket in the years before the war. It was a relationship that had lasted off and on for many years. She owed the older man for saving her from a situation that would have ended in her premature death. Not only had he whisked her, an American girl, away from a brothel in Italy, he had taught her the business of the confidence game. His specialty had been gambling and cards. Few knew the short balding man had been anything other than the wealthy casino owner he portrayed. No, Duchess knew Bernardo was not happy with her right now, and she could not explain her actions to him. But he would get over it. She would see that she made it up to him.

GGGGG

Garrison went into Terry's room and pulled his sister's foot. As expected, she jerked awake. A glance at the clock had her giving him a quizzical look. It was only three in the afternoon.

"What's up?" she asked with a yawn.

"We aren't quite overlapping," said Craig. "I leave for Norway in two hours."

"Oh great," groaned Terry. "What can I fix for you to eat?"

"I already had a sandwich," said Garrison. He watched her fling the covers back and sit up on the edge of the bed. "You don't look much better than you did before you went to bed," he teased.

"Thanks, Brother," she said back at him.

An army staff car picked Garrison up at 5 pm.

Terry put dinner on the table at six. Terry picked at her food, not as hungry as she thought she was going to be.

"'Ey, Love, want to go to the Doves with us?" asked Goniff cheerfully.

"No," replied the girl. "I want to go back to bed." She eyed the Cockney. "What makes you think I'm going to let you go to the Doves?"

"What makes you think you're gonna be able to stop us?" asked Casino with a grin.

"If you guys wash the dishes up, I won't call the MPs on you," she shot back with a tired smile. "And stay out of trouble. I'm not getting up in the middle of the night to bail you jokers out of jail."

Chief grinned at her. "That's the Warden's line."

"And we're both Garrisons aren't we?"

She pushed away from the table and trudged toward the stairs. As tired and down as she was, she really could not have cared less if they did the dishes, got jailed, or anything else for that matter.

It was eight o'clock when Casino carefully opened the door to Terry's room. He walked in and pulled the blackout drapes shut. The lump in the bed did not stir, so he went back to the door, out of range of the girl's fist.

"Babe?" he called out softly.

"What?" came a muffled voice from under the blankets.

Casino grinned and shook his head. "Dishes are done. We're leavin' now."

"Use the front door this time," mumbled the girl.

"That's no fun," chuckled the safecracker.

"Char-lie."

Casino laughed out right now. "Go back to sleep, Babe."

"I am sleeping."

Casino chuckled some more and closed the door. Maybe things were looking better if she was callin' him by his real first name.

GGGGG

Kiera Andersen hurried down the darkening street to the flat she sometimes shared with her husband, Petr. How she wished Petr was there now, but she had neither heard nor seen anything of him for the past six weeks. It always frightened her that he could be dead and she would never know it. She flipped the curly brown hair back from her face, using the movement to cover her glancing in a passing shop window for the reflection of a tail. There had never been one, but they could never let their guard down.

Pulling the heavy cloth coat covering her maid's uniform closer around her, she took the key from her pocket and unlocked the door beside the apothecary shop. Entering quickly, she shut and locked the door behind her before mounting the steep and narrow stairs to the second floor flat.

As soon as she started opening her door, she knew the apartment was not empty. Her head jerked around toward the tall blond man standing in front of the tiny fireplace. He was clad in dark tight pants and a pale blue long sleeved peasant's shirt, open at the neck to reveal a hint of the blond hair she knew graced the muscular chest.

"Petr," she breathed in relief.

Blue-green hazel eyes watched her as she shrugged out of the coat and hung it on the tree. A welcoming smile greeted her when she turned back. "It's safe," said the man. "I checked for bugs."

"Oh, Craig, I have missed you so much," said the woman as she moved into his loving embrace.

"I missed you too, Jenny," said Garrison, burying his face in her shoulder.

After a heartfelt embrace, their lips met. The kiss they shared was passionate and reassuring at the same time. When their lips parted, Jenny stayed in the circle of Craig's arms and looked searchingly into his face.

"Are you hurt? What happened?" she questioned with concern.

"I'm not hurt. Everything's fine," he reassured her.

"I thought you would be right back after they pulled you out the last time," she said, "but you didn't come back."

"There was a short string of missions," said Craig, trying not to drown in her blue eyes. "One of my men got injured."

"Oh, no! Bad?" Jenny had never met any of Craig's men but she had heard enough about them to feel close to them.

Garrison shook his head. "It wasn't good, but Terry took care of him." He locked eyes with Jenny. "Are you all right?"

The woman nodded. "I suppose so. Nothing has been done to me, but I would really like to get out of that wretched place. Number twelve is bringing in some young boys now. I clean that room afterward and I just want to vomit."

Craig pulled her closer, feeling her burrow into him. He tightened his arms around her. "I know, Baby, I know," he murmured into her ear. "We've been here too long. They need to bring in another team. I'll work on them again when I get back to England."

It scared him to have to keep leaving her here alone. She had been undercover for a long time. The longer she was here the greater the chance her cover would be blown. Knowing the type of people they were dealing with, their treatment of her as a spy would be exceedingly harsh.

"Did you eat?" asked Craig.

"Cook gave me something from the kitchen," said Jenny. She stepped back and looked up at him. "I can make you something. Are you hungry?"

"Yeah," said Craig with a lusty grin, "but I wasn't thinking about food."

"Craig Garrison, I swear all you want me for is my body!" An equally lusty look in her eye and a teasing quality in her voice, belied any hint of anger those words should have pronounced.

Craig's grin softened to a smile. "Baby, I want you for your body, your mind, your heart, and your soul."

Jenny's smile was soft with a hint of shyness, "That's good Craig Garrison, because they are yours."

"And all of me belongs to you, Jenny Harkness." His smile went back to a grin, "But right now I want you, and I want you badly." He took a step toward her.

Jenny took a step back and placed a restraining hand on his chest. "I want you too, Darling, but first I want a bath to get the feel of that filthy place off of me." She smiled provocatively. "I promise I won't be long."

Jenny went into the bathroom and ran water in the tub. She could hear Craig moving around in the bedroom. His presence gave her comfort and longing. She felt blessed that she had been paired up with the American lieutenant. She had loved him from the first day together. He was warm, kind and caring . . . and he loved her too. At her advanced age of twenty-five, he had been her first and, as far as she was concerned, her only. When she had told him that first night with embarrassment that she had never been with a man before, instead of callously taking what she offered, he had held back and gentled her with his hands, teaching her and making the way easier for her. After that, he had taught her about herself and him. Now she knew every part of him, where his pleasure spots were, what soothed him and what excited him, and she reveled in that knowledge. He was a caring lover, always seeing to her needs before his own.

As she stepped into the tub and sank into the scant 6 inches of water in the bottom, she heard the bathroom door open. Craig entered and stood before her, gloriously naked, his eyes deepening to blue as his gaze slowly washed over her. Her eyes covered him also, admiring the handsome face with the cleft in the chin, going down to the broad expanse of chest that was powerfully muscled and covered with a mat of blond curls, the chest tapering down to a tight waist and narrow hips atop muscular thighs. Her eyes focused on his groin and she smiled at the evidence of his need.

"I thought you might like some help," said Craig huskily, sinking to his knees on the bath rug in front of the tub.

"Your attention is always appreciated," Jenny said softly and handed him the bath sponge.

GGGGG

The attention his wife was giving to the confidence man was not appreciated by Bernardo. When he arose the next morning, she still had not been to bed. The older man dressed and went to the spare room. Duchess was still sitting beside Actor.

"Is he any better?" asked Bernardo.

"The fever seems to be coming down," said Duchess. She got up and exchanged a kiss and smile with her husband. "Would you watch him while I get some sleep? Just keep changing the cloths when they get warm."

"I would rather send him to a hospital," grumbled the older man.

"Too many questions by the authorities," said Katherine. She smiled. "The sooner we get him well, the sooner he will leave." She did know how to manipulate her husband.

"Ah, that is a thought," nodded Bernardo. "Sleep well, My Love."

With another kiss, Duchess left her husband to take up her duties with their invalid house guest. Bernardo pulled a chair close to the bed. He studied the tall, dark man, remembering hearing him say to the army lieutenant that Bernardo had to be blackmailing Duchess to get her to marry him. Blackmailing, no. But the older man had no illusions about the relationship he had with his wife. He was rich and she still felt that she owed her life to him. He did not know if she truly loved him, but she took care of his every need without complaint and at his age, so much older than her, he was grateful. So Bernardo bought her everything she desired and fulfilled her every wish. And that included taking care of the man in the bed.

He had to admit, the burning of his casino in Nice had been a blessing in disguise. With the money the woman had taken from the army officer, they had been able to journey to Switzerland, a much safer place than Vichy France. A few months of card games and cons and there was more than enough money to buy the suite and a new casino. The new Bernardo's was just as profitable, if not more so, than the one in France had been. So, he exchanged warm cloths for cool ones on the confidence man's forehead.

Bernardo's thoughts returned to his wife. He knew about some of her past. Or thought he knew about it. As a teenager on vacation in Italy, she had become separated from her companions, kidnapped, and kept in confinement for a year. After people quit looking for her, she had been forced into prostitution at a family owned whorehouse. By that time, she had been well trained. One of her clients had taken a liking to the young girl and spirited her away to France. There he began teaching her the confidence game. When her benefactor was killed over a card game, the young woman returned to Italy to take up a life of confidence games. She came across another, older, woman, who was also a confidence woman. For whatever reason, the older woman took the younger one under her tutelage and taught her more of the game. Cards and gambling were Katherine's specialties, but she had never forgotten the skills she had learned from her kidnapper and the house of prostitution. It made Bernardo's older years much happier.

Actor became aware slowly. A cool cloth had just been placed across his forehead. He was in a comfortable bed. His heels were right at the edge of the bottom of the mattress. His chest still hurt, but not as bad as when he had dropped from the bottom of the train car.

Obviously, he was not alone. The faint smell of cologne or aftershave floated past his nostrils. It was a man. Actor tried to remember where he was. He had gone to the residence of the Duchess. She had let him inside, and from that point on he remembered nothing.

Cautiously, he opened his eyes. Bernardo was sitting next to the bed, watching him. The eyes were not friendly and the mouth was in a straight line dividing gray beard from mustache. Sunlight filled the room.

"I apologize for the inconvenience I am giving you," said Actor with a dry throat. He made an attempt to pull the covers back. "I will leave."

"No you won't," said Bernardo. "You will stay right where you are."

Actor was unsure if the man meant to call the police on him or what he intended to do.

"My wife would be very unhappy if I let you leave. The doctor said you have pneumonia and we must take good care of you. Besides, how far do you think you would get? It would be most inconvenient to have to explain your body outside my door or in the elevator. And it would be most tiring to have to drag you back up here."

Actor lay back and eyed the man. What he said made sense, but Bernardo's demeanor was not solicitous. He watched the older man reach for a bottle of pills and remove one. He then poured a glass of water from a carafe. Actor was dying for a drink to ease the dryness of his mouth and throat. The glass and the pill were held out to him. He pushed himself into a sitting position with a cough. He eyed the medicine warily.

"It is antibiotic," said Bernardo, recognizing the hesitancy.

It did look familiar, so Actor accepted it and washed it down with the entire glass of water. He collapsed onto his back. No, not only would he not make it to the elevator in the shape he was in, he doubted he would even make it to the door.

"Who shot you?"

Actor hesitated. "Wehrmacht."

"We thought as much," nodded Bernardo. "Prison camp?"

"Yes."

Bernardo finally gave a small smile. "As you will be staying with us for awhile, I will look forward to hearing how you managed to arrive here. I am sure it will be a most interesting story." The eyes hardened. "In return for our generosity, you will not steal from me, neither money, nor my wife."

"I do not need your money, I assure you," said Actor. "And as delightful as she is, I do not want your wife."

"Then you may stay for as long as you need to."

Both men prayed that would not be too long of a time.


	10. Chapter 10

The Expendable One

Chapter 10

Garrison was dropped off at the mansion. The Packard and the MG were there so he hoped that meant everything was okay. With his sister and his group, he doubted it. Letting himself in the front door, he was greeted by Chris; the wrong sister.

"Hi Craig," said Chris with a smile.

"Okay, where's Terry? She didn't go in with Randy."

Crystal made a face and shook her head. "She's on the Continent, but I don't know who she went in with. She called me to come here and then she took the motorcycle instead of her car."

Garrison looked at his men and counted heads. Amazing. They were all there.

"Carter?"

The con man looked at him steadily. "Haven't any idea. She doesn't talk to me."

Garrison realized that was true. Where she had begun informing Actor of her plans or missions, she did not share her confidences with the newer man.

"How was Norway?" asked Christine cheerfully.

"Cold."

GGGGG

Actor napped off and on the rest of the morning. His rest was fitful due to frequent bouts of coughing. Bernardo left him for short periods of time but made sure water was close at hand for his to drink.

Duchess breezed into the bedroom in early afternoon, looking as radiant as Actor had remembered her in Cannes. She took up the vigil with him to the relief of her husband. It was after Bernardo had gone to the casino that she began asking Actor questions about what had happened to him. It did not take long for him to figure out her concern was more for Garrison.

"What happened to the others?" she asked. "Were they captured too?"

"No," replied Actor. "It was just Garrison and I. He was able to get away."

"He did not come back for you?" asked the blond woman in surprise.

"I don't know," said Actor. "I was taken to a hospital in Berlin. I don't know if the lieutenant even knew where I was, or if I was alive for that matter."

"Still, he should have come after you," she puzzled.

Actor gave a small smile. "I doubt the Army would allow him to. Besides, he would not have known where to look."

"I don't understand," Duchess said with a frown. "You are part of the team. Why would the Army keep Garrison from returning for you?"

Actor was not sure if and how he should explain they were all considered 'expendable' by the Army. Four of them were 'low life' cons and the lieutenant was lumped in with them as far as the Army was concerned. In the end he simply said, "It is the Army's way of doing things."

The doctor returned that evening and was pleased that Actor had made it through the night and seemed to be slightly improved. He explained the pneumonia, not knowing of Actor's medical background. Even without that, the con man recognized his symptoms were much the same as Teresa's when he had taken care of her after the misadventure in Belgium. Actor was informed he would be here for at least a couple weeks.

The con man wasn't sure how that would go over with Bernardo. He had not planned on staying with Duchess and her husband. Then again, he had not planned on anything. Now he thought about it. He had plenty of money in two accounts in one of the Swiss banks. He just needed to be strong enough to leave and access it. Actor could take a suite in one of the hotels, but he preferred to keep a low profile for now. He had always wanted an apartment in Zurich, maybe now was the time to buy one.

By the end of the first week, Actor was pushing himself to gain strength. Duchess and Bernardo both brought him food that tempted his discerning palate. The couple still took turns sitting with him. As it was Actor and Bernardo began talking. They compared notes on the French Riviera. The man was almost as old as Actor's father would have been, but better preserved. Actor found he had more in common with the French man than his own father.

By the end of the second week, Actor felt able to go for short walks outside. Duchess gave him some money for a cab and the Italian was able to get to his bank. It took most of a day to gain access to his accounts with no identification. In the end, he rode back to the suite with money, a store-bought suit, how degrading, and peace of mind. Exhausted, he went to sleep right after supper.

The next day, Actor, went looking for a suite. The fourth one he looked at fit his needs, now and in the future. There was the usual bargaining, but cold hard cash won out and he found himself with a set of keys.

Actor met Bernardo at the casino and had a private chat in the man's office. Bernardo was surprised when the confidence man attempted to reimburse him for the money they had spent on him. The older man refused to take it. He had come to like the con man. The Italian reminded him of his younger days. And, true to his word, he had made no play for Duchess. Now it remained to be seen if the same would be said about his playing the casino.

The move to his new abode went seamlessly as he had no belongings other than the suit he was wearing. Mornings were spent buying necessities and getting a few more custom made suits. He kept it to a minimum knowing at some point he would regain the weight he had lost in the last two and a half months. Afternoons, he followed the time honored Italian custom of _pausa_ , finding he still needed a rest before any evening activities. He ate his meals in restaurants and his life took on the style he had previously had before moving to the United States. There was only one thing missing and had been missing for way too long.

Actor pushed some of his chips onto two numbers on the table and watched the roulette wheel spin. One of his numbers hit and brought him a tidy little sum. He was fully aware of Bernardo and sometimes one of his men keeping him under surveillance. He had no intentions of cheating the man who had helped him. And he did not even realize the change in him from when he had worked casinos before.

A perky little brunette was openly observing him from the other side of the table. Eye contact was made and smiles exchanged. Actor bought her a drink. One thing led to another and he broke in the new bed in the new apartment.

The next morning, Actor was leaning against the headboard, smoking a cigarette. The woman was in the shower. Her name was Liesel. She was a lovely young woman, but her name brought up visions of another Liesel, one of his partner's aliases. Actor pushed that thought away. He was nicely tired, but his ribs hurt from the exertion. The woman had been pleased with his performance, but it wasn't up to what Actor knew was his standard. Well, on the way home, he would take her to a perfumery and buy her whatever she wanted.

GGGGG

Terry blew in two days after Garrison's return. She was soaking wet. The rain was cold and the wind had made riding the motorcycle difficult. She pushed her dripping hair out of her face and headed for the stairs, not paying any attention to the men in the common room.

"Hey, Babe," Casino called out. "You always take a shower with your clothes on?"

"And the horse you rode in on, Casino," she grumbled back at him.

It brought a roar of laughter from the safe cracker. And grins from the other men. Garrison called out to her to come in his office.

Terry walked to the doorway and glared at him. "You want me to drip on your floor? I'm not mopping it up."

Garrison looked at his sister and was reminded of a half-drowned cow dog. He could not prevent a grin. "So next time take your car."

"Too conspicuous."

"Never stopped you before."

She smiled insincerely. "Depends on where I'm going out of."

"And where was that?" he asked.

"Somewhere the MG would have been conspicuous." She curled her upper lip at him. "Mind if I go take a shower and get into something dry?"

"No," said Craig innocently. "You have time before you have to make dinner."

"Dinner! Where's Chris?"

"She had to visit Auntie. You know how sick Auntie gets."

"You know entirely too much, Craig Garrison."

"You're the one who told her I have enough clearance," he teased.

Grumbling, the girl went upstairs. A half hour later, she came back down and stood surveying the men.

"Okay, what do you want for dinner?" she asked.

Goniff piped up immediately. "Pork chops."

Three more 'pork chops' came from the other cons.

"Pork chops," came from Garrison's office.

"Pork chops," muttered the girl, turning and heading for the kitchen. She swore when this war was over she was never cooking or eating another pork chop. Carter and Chief were even asking for pork chops, and neither man usually asked for anything specific.

GGGGG

The tall, thin, suave man cut a little bite from his schnitzel. He liked schnitzel, but somehow he just did not have an appetite. He would have skipped dinner entirely if he had not known he needed to put a lot more weight on. Taking a sip of the excellent house white, he pondered how things for him had gone back to the way they had been before the war, but he simply was not enjoying it. He did not understand why. He would not have lacked for female company, and part of him wanted to indulge in that. However, it had taken him two days to recover from the night with Liesel. His chest still hurt with exertion, but his breathing was almost back to normal.

Actor did not know what the problem was. There was restlessness in him. He spent time furnishing the new suite with the basic necessities. He took long walks to build his stamina back up. After a nap in the afternoon, he had a late supper and then gambled at Bernardo's or one of the other casinos. So why wasn't he happy?

GGGGG

Two more weeks went by with two more missions. At least there had been no injuries, thought Garrison. Now they would see if they could make it three. Craig was on his way back to the mansion from London. He had just briefed with Gen. Abrams. This one sounded easy enough, but a bit strange. Maybe he was just getting paranoid. It was the odd ones that usually went well and the normal ones that turned out bad.

Craig bounded up the steps and into the mansion. The men looked at him and the briefcase cuffed to his wrist.

"Now where?" asked Casino disgustedly.

"Switzerland," said Garrison.

Chief pulled the match from between his teeth and pushed the chair back from the chess table. "Not Basel again?" he asked, drawing the name out to show his disgust.

"No," said Garrison, "a little farther from the border. Come on in and I'll brief you."

"Me too?" asked Terry eagerly, mending forgotten in her lap.

"Not this time." He did not miss the disappointed look that crossed the girl's face.

The men all went into Garrison's office. The officer unlocked the briefcase with the key in his desk. His Ike jacket was removed and draped over the back of his chair. To the men's surprise, the officer did not bring any papers to the conference table.

"So wot kind o' caper is this?" asked Goniff with a frown.

"Go in, pick up an agent and get out." Garrison took a seat at the head of the table. "We fly in tonight, rendezvous with the agent, and fly back out."

"We jumpin'?" asked Casino.

Garrison smiled. "No, this time we're going to land at a small air field."

"So what's the story with this one?" asked Chief.

Garrison looked around at his men. "An agent has asked to be removed. This agent has been in Germany for some time and thinks it's getting too hot to stay."

Now it was Carter's turn. "You refer to the person as 'agent'. Male or female?"

"I don't know," replied Garrison. "The brass doesn't know either. The person has been vetted by the resistance in Switzerland, so they think it's legit."

Casino shook his head. "Knew it. It couldn't be that easy. Somethin's fishy about this."

"Maybe," agreed Garrison, "but we still do it."

"So how are we going to identify this person if we don't know who it is?" persisted Carter.

"Apparently the agent has it all planned down to the last detail. We meet in a park, on a specific park bench and I will have a specific book with me. The usual code words."

"Sounds funny to me," said Chief. "We don't even know if this guy or dame is worth all this."

"Chief," said Garrison with patience, "they don't send us unless the person is 'worth all this', do they?"

"I guess."

GGG

Chief leaned casually against a tree and watched Garrison sitting alone on a park bench. The scout's eyes kept scanning the area that was mostly grass and a few clumps of trees. The lake was a sparkling blue with no waves. Two little boys with their nannies, or whatever they called them in Switzerland, were playing with toy sailboats along the cement edge of the water. It reminded Chief of the little boy in Norway. There were no soldiers and only a couple elderly women walking the graveled paths.

Garrison held an open book with a French title and pretended to read. It was not that he couldn't read a little French, but his attention was on who was around him. He waited a long ten minutes without any sign of a contact. Stretching, he glanced around. Down by the lake's edge, a misshapen, gray haired grizzled man with a cane and rough clothing had stopped to talk with an elderly woman. Garrison went back to his book, knowing Chief would have an eye on the old couple.

A few minutes later, the old man took a seat on the other end of the bench and scratched under his arm. Garrison fervently hoped the man stayed on his end of the bench. He didn't look any too clean. The clothes were dirty and there were holes in the elbows of the ratty coat the man wore. His shoes were scuffed and worn beneath pants that had definitely seen better days. He did not seem too healthy. The clothes hung on him.

"Hello, Warden," the man said softly with amusement.

It took all of Garrison's self control to not look at the man and to keep a grin off his face.

"Are you our contact?" asked Craig in a low voice. Hardly daring to believe it was his second.

"Really, Lieutenant, no password or countersign?"

"Looks like rain."

The sky was clear and blue. The air was slightly cool.

"I believe it will snow tonight."

"Where the hell have you been?" demanded Garrison in a calm quiet voice.

"That is a very long story. One I do not wish to discuss here. Is there a safe house?"

"Yes." Garrison gave him the address.

"I will see you in an hour," said Actor.

Garrison now turned his head and eyed the gray haired, disheveled man with disdain. Closing his book, he stood and walked away. The old man remained as if to soak up the warm sun and scratched his belly.

Garrison was almost to the entrance of the park when Chief fell in beside him. Neither looked at the other.

"Seen him dressed like an old man before," observed the Indian, lips barely moving. "He comin' with us? Actor, I mean."

"Safe house in an hour," said Garrison. "Yes, he's coming with us."

The two men entered the attic room to see the wrong end of gun barrels. The three occupants at the table put their guns away.

When nothing was forthcoming, Casino asked with his blustery manner, "So did you make contact?"

"Yes," said Garrison.

Chief took his usual stance by the window, watching the street below for loiterers who might not have their best interest in mind, nor that of the man who was expected to arrive.

"And?" asked the safecracker. It was like pulling teeth to get anything from the officer about this odd mission.

Garrison tossed the book on a nearby table and removed his coat, hanging it on a coat tree that had been moved away from the only door. "The contact will be here in a short time."

"So who is he?" asked Carter.

"An operative who needs to be returned to England before the Germans tumble him," was all Garrison would say.

Something was funny here, but the three cons did not know what. Carter recognized there was a con going on, but he could not tell what it was. A half hour later, Chief snapped his fingers, signaling Garrison from the window. A couple minutes later, Rene, owner of the bookstore that was their safe house, cautiously opened the door to the attic. He glanced at the men, looking for weapons aimed in his direction and addressed Garrison.

"Your package has arrived," he said dubiously.

"Thank you," said Craig. "You can send it up." Rene left and Garrison looked at Chief. "Was he followed?"

"Don't look like," said the Indian continuing to watch the street.

There was a tap at the door before it opened to admit the crooked old man. Garrison walked up and shut the door behind him. The man scratched his ribs.

"You better not have lice," said Garrison severely.

The brusque rudeness earned him surprised looks from three of his men and a sparkling hazel-eyed glance of humor from beneath bushy gray brows. The old man straightened and rolled his shoulders to ease the ache from the long period of being twisted up. He stretched and stood at his full six feet four inches.

"Bloody 'ell!"

"Figures," said Casino with a grin.

Actor looked at the two men with something that might have been misconstrued as affection, but his eyes lingered on the other blonde man.

"Ah, a newcomer?" he asked Garrison.

"This is Carter, our new confidence man."

The bushy eyebrows rose as the old man gave the younger one a once over.

Carter studied him with the same amount of interest. "I assume you're Actor."

"That's what they call me," said the older confidence man. "Among other things."

Unable to resist, Actor scratched his chest, grinning when Garrison took a step away.

"It's all right, Warden," said the Italian with a big grin. "I have been deloused."

"Where you been?" asked Goniff, keeping his distance. Actor still looked like he might be crawling with lice.

"A prison camp in Germany," said Actor, taking off his jacket. "A very strange prison camp."

"Yeah, well, G-2 would love to hear about this very strange prison camp," said Garrison. "I would bet you met some interesting people there too."

Garrison studied his former second. He looked fairly healthy, but much thinner. Whether this was from his injury or lack of food, he would have to find out later. The clothes still hung on his tall lanky frame and the cheekbones were even more prominent. The hazel brown eyes were bright and sharp. The full shaggy mustache matched the bushy eyebrows in color and appearance. Garrison wondered if they were fake. He bet the stubbly beard was real with coloring to make it match the man's hair.

"Yes," agreed Actor, hanging his coat next to Garrison's; a move the younger officer did not seem appreciative of. "Unfortunately they have probably relocated at least the prisoners, if not the entire camp, since I managed to escape."

"What brought you to Zurich?" asked Carter. He wanted to learn more about this man he had heard so much about.

Actor was not trusting of his replacement yet. "A train and a vegetable truck."

Casino, Goniff and Chief chuckled at the answer. Carter just took it in stride.

Garrison was interested in hearing the entire story, but had a feeling they would be back in England before he got more than an abbreviated version. Actor's glance at him told him he was right. Craig leaned against the wall and watched the con man take a seat at the table.

"How are we getting out?" asked Actor, looking up at him.

"This is a neutral country," said Garrison. "A plane will pick us up at an airport outside of the city."

Actor nodded.

"So what happened?" asked Casino in exasperation.

Actor began to weave the story, mostly true, but missing a few points. He explained about the hospital in Berlin, his con with the interrogation and the unexpected response to it. The description of the prison, the inmates, and the commandant had Garrison's attention.

"So how'd you get out?" asked Goniff.

"I merely joined the troupe of actors when they left."

"Aw, come on!" scoffed Casino. "Now you're connin' us again."

"I assure you I am not," said Actor. "That is exactly how it happened."

He continued with his story about taking the train to the border and riding the bottom of the train car into Switzerland. He explained the vegetable farmer had taken him into Zurich and he stayed with friends until he had recovered from the pneumonia.

Again Casino shook his head. "Actor, you got marks. You don't have friends."

"You might be surprised, Casino," replied the con man.

Garrison almost believed him. It was possible he supposed, but he bet there was a lot more to that story than the Italian was letting on.

"So what'd yuh do for money?" asked Chief, glancing away from the window for a second.

"I have money in a bank there," admitted the con man.

"Swiss accounts," mused Carter. "Not bad."

"So how come you didn't get money from that bank heist in Basel?" probed the safecracker.

"I was not in need of any at the time," answered Actor smoothly. He turned to Garrison before any more questions could be broached. "When are we departing?"

Craig watched him. "Twenty hundred hours." He eyed the man's apparel. "You planning on going dressed like that?"

The con man shrugged elegantly. "I could use a bit of assistance with that. I have a bag in a locker at the train station, if someone could go get it."

"Guess that would be me," said Carter. "I speak German if there's a problem getting the bag."

"There should be no problem," said Actor. "I would appreciate it." He looked down at himself. "This is not how I am accustomed to dressing," he said with distaste. He rubbed a hand over the stubble on his face. "I have a razor in the bag also."

"All that on your face yours?" asked Craig with humor.

"All except the mustache," replied Actor with a grin.

Garrison chuckled. "Okay, Carter, you can go." He looked at his scout. "Chief, go with him, just in case."

Carter got the location and information from the con man. Garrison waited until the younger con man and the Indian had left. He followed Actor to the window as the tall man watched the street until he could no longer see the two men. Actor glanced at the lieutenant.

Garrison's voice was low. "I'd really like to hear the rest of the story sometime."

"I'm sure," smiled Actor.


	11. Chapter 11

The Expendable One

Chapter 11

The men entered the house, but stood in a group by the door. They were all quiet, waiting to see how this was going to play out. Terry came out of the kitchen and around the dining room table with a smile.

"I have sandwiches to tide you guys over until sup . . ."

Actor stepped up beside Garrison, his eyes on the girl. There was dead silence in the room. They all watched the color drain from her face. Craig wondered if she might pass out. With great effort the girl pulled herself together.

"Took you long enough," she said dismissively. "Sandwiches are on the table. Dinner will be ready in four hours."

She turned on her heels and disappeared into the kitchen. The men looked at each other.

"Welcome back, Actor," said Casino sarcastically.

It was only the con man and the girl's brother who understood what was going on. The others walked around the two men and went to get the food that had been laid out on the table. Actor looked at the Lieutenant. Craig gave a minute nod of his head, indicating permission to find the girl.

Actor walked past the table and the men, through the swinging door into the kitchen. Terry was standing at the sink, doing nothing except staring out the window. Her shoulders were stiff and she gripped the sink edge with white knuckles. Actor slowly approached her.

"Teresa?"

"I don't know whether to kiss you or hit you," she said quietly. She looked up at him with glassy eyes. "Switzerland, Vittorio? Switzerland? For three months we searched and worried about you. And you were spending the time comfortably in Switzerland? Damn you!" She swung her right arm and punched him hard in the left ribs.

He hissed a breath of pain and clutched his side with one hand while grabbing her fist with the other. It felt like the rib had cracked yet again.

"Are you hurt?" asked the girl, instantly contrite.

"I was shot. I have not fully recovered yet," he said in anger.

She pulled her hand away and moved forward to see what damage she had done. He straightened and looked down at her with a sneer.

"Enough," he said firmly. "I am quite capable of taking care of it myself. Just leave me alone."

He turned and walked back into the dining room. The other men looked at his stony countenance.

"What did she do, slug yuh?" asked Casino jokingly.

"Yes."

The con man walked away. His concern more for Actor than Terry at this point, Garrison rose abruptly from the table and stormed into the kitchen. His sister was standing by the sink, head bowed.

"What the hell is the matter with you?" Garrison demanded. "Why did you hit him? Obviously your aim is perfect. You must have nailed him good."

"I didn't know," said Terry, not looking at him. "You picked him up in Switzerland. What did he do, take a little vacation?"

"He was hurt and he couldn't get across Germany after he escaped from a prison camp. He went to Switzerland until he healed enough to make contact and get picked up."

'Scheisse," said Terry. She turned on her brother now. "Did you know going in that was who you were going after?"

"No," said Garrison angrily. "I didn't know it was him until we made contact." He forced himself to settle down. "Terry, he came back. He didn't have to. He could have spent the rest of the war there, but he – came – back." Craig shook his head. "You know, if you don't stop being nasty to him, I'll start thinking you're in love with him." He turned on his heel and pushed out the swinging door.

The girl stared at his back.

Actor went into the common room and sank into his chair, waiting for the pain to ease. When he could finally breathe again without too much discomfort, he took the briar and bag of tobacco from the inside pocket of his jacket. The briar was still not totally broken in, but he figured all of his belongings had been boxed. Hopefully they had not been disposed of. The ritual of making a pipe calmed him, as did the first puff of smoke.

This was not exactly the 'homecoming' he had hoped for. After this long he really had not known what kind of response he would receive from Teresa. The woman did have a temper. And she had a point. She could easily have expected him to have sat out the war in Switzerland. Actor was aware Garrison had stormed into the kitchen. He wished the lieutenant had not done that. It surprised him that Garrison even had. Actor did not need anyone to take up for him. And he would have preferred Teresa to come around on her own, without someone forcing the issue on her. Crossing his ankles atop the ottoman, Actor forced himself to relax.

Terry did not come out of the kitchen until the men were finished eating. Garrison got up and left the table, going to his office. The others headed for their rooms, except Casino. He wasn't sure what mood the girl was still in.

"Hey, Sister," he broached.

"Yes?" she asked looking up from gathering dishes.

"Think I could get your magic fingers before I go lay down?" He watched her reaction.

Terry gave a little smile. "Sure."

He went into the common room. Actor was in his chair. This might be awkward, but then again, the girl had hit the con man. Maybe that friendship was over. Casino pulled out a chair at the table and flipped it around. He unbuttoned his shirt, shrugged out of it and dropped it on the table. The singlet was yanked off and dropped on top of the shirt. He sat down, straddling the chair.

Terry came silently from the dining room, ignoring the con man. She stopped behind Casino and began what had become a ritual with him of working the tight muscles and skin of the safecracker's back.

"Still tightening up?" she asked.

"Not as bad," replied the cracksman, beginning to relax under ministrations. "Look any better?"

Terry gave a humph. "Compared to what it was yes. It isn't ever going to look good again though."

"Yeah, I know."

Actor watched in curiosity. "What happened?" he asked.

"Gestapo had me for two days," replied Casino. "You can look if yuh want."

Actor levered out of the wing backed chair with a slight grimace, the pipe clamped between his teeth. As he approached, Teresa moved away and walked back toward the kitchen.

"She did not need to stop," said Actor.

"It's okay. Every little bit helps."

Actor took in the raised crisscross pink scars. He could see the damage was going to be permanent.

"Riding crop?"

Casino nodded. "Seems to be their favorite toy." He sent a glance over his shoulder at the man who had been their medical person for so long. "Any suggestions?"

Actor shook his head. "Just what she is doing. Exercise to keep your muscles and skin supple."

"I – uh – borrowed your hand weights, seein' as you weren't usin' 'em," said Casino, without apology.

"Good choice," said Actor, puffing on his pipe. He did not think he would be able to use them for awhile yet. He coughed and splinted his ribs with his elbow.

"Nailed yuh good, huh," said the safecracker knowingly. After all, he had been on the receiving end of the girl's anger in the past.

"Let's just say she did not pull her punch."

"I'm goin' tuh bed," said Casino, getting up and gathering his clothes. He doubted Terry would be back to finish what she had started.

The con man remained behind after Casino had gone upstairs. He went to the door of Garrison's office and looked at the officer questioningly.

"Where am I sleeping, Warden?" he asked.

"In your room," said Craig with a half grin. "Sister Teresa wouldn't let anyone touch it. Carter's sleeping in the spare bedroom."

"For three months?" asked the con man in surprise.

"I'm not fighting with her," replied Craig. "You and Casino know how hard she hits." He gestured toward Actor. "She do damage?"

The Italian shrugged. "I believe it is cracked again. It will heal again. You need not intervene with her. It is of no consequence."

"Sorry," apologized Garrison with a small smile. "I just wanted you to stay in one piece."

Actor gave a crooked grin. "I am in one piece, just slightly bent."

He left and went up to his room with relief that it had been untouched. Garrison yawned and followed.

GGG

Dinner was its normal boisterous meal, with the exception of Terry who only answered when spoken to. Actor had his usual seat at the foot of the table and the girl had placed a chair for herself between him and Carter. She picked at the small portion of food on her plate, but surreptitiously made sure the Italian was eating the larger portion she had given him. After the meal, Terry declined Chief's offer of help with the dishes and stayed in the kitchen the rest of the evening.

The men were still tired and the complications of this mission were sinking in. Actor had taken his chair back as his own, leaving Carter to sit at the table with Goniff and Casino. Neither of the latter was playing cards this time. Chief was sitting in the other wing-backed chair, cleaning his knife.

Goniff glanced between the two confidence men. "Bloody 'ell, Warden. We got two of 'em now. Army isn't going to like that."

Garrison came to his door. "No, probably not. This wasn't what they expected. I don't think they know what to do yet."

Terry came out of the kitchen and took a seat at the game table. "Does the Brass know yet?" she asked.

Garrison nodded. "Gen. Abrams knows. Actor and I debriefed with him before we left London."

"So what do we do?" asked Chief.

"We'll have to think about that." Garrison looked at his men. "We'll deal with it in the morning."

The two men in question seemed to be avoiding each other, but both had been studying the other from the time Actor had entered the safe house. Carter had heard about Actor before he had been chosen as the man's replacement and from the other three men. Actor was only vaguely familiar with Carter's name, but not his reputation. The younger blond was an unknown entity. What Actor did know was that Teresa had been working with him for three months. That could be a problem.

They all decided to make an early night of it. There was no telling how soon they would be handed another mission. The ones at the table left and headed for the stairs. Actor was slow in getting up to follow, putting out his pipe first.

Garrison eyed his second carefully. The man looked tired, but not exhausted. Craig caught Actor's eye and reached up to run his hand through his tawny hair, making a slight drinking motion as his hand lowered past his mouth. A slow blink of the con man's eyes acknowledged and agreed.

The house was quiet when the door to Garrison's room opened and the tall Italian stepped inside. Actor closed the door silently and took the desk chair beside the lieutenant's bed. An open bottle of brandy and two glasses sat on the night table. Garrison poured a healthy amount into both glasses and touched rims with Actor as was their custom. Both took a good swallow of the alcohol and let it make its fiery way to their bellies.

"Any idea what we are to do with me now?" asked Actor. He had faith the officer would come up with a workable plan.

"Not yet," admitted Garrison. He wondered why Actor had sought them out and returned. The man had been free. Considered dead, and free. So he asked, "Why didn't you just stay in Switzerland and sit the rest of the war out?"

"I stayed in Switzerland a month," said the con man with a smile. "I needed a place to rest and heal. It was easy finding them, you know. The casino is the same name as the one we burned in Nice."

"Bernardo must be dead if he let you near The Duchess," said Garrison. He wondered just what had happened in Switzerland.

"No, he is very much alive," replied Actor. "And they were very gracious. I could stay as long as I did not fleece Bernardo's casino or touch the Duchess. Not that I would do either."

Garrison gave a short laugh. "Come on, Actor. You were trying to get into a relationship with Duchess the entire time we were in Nice."

"Yes," agreed the con man. "But at the end, I realized she was not interested in me, or Bernardo for that matter. You two knew each other long before that caper. I have some scruples. Not many, but some."

Garrison looked at Actor in wonder. The man was good. Had he and the Duchess been that obvious? "How did you know?"

"Little things," smiled the Italian, taking a smaller sip of brandy this time. "Little looks between you two. And, I'm sorry, Warden, but if she wasn't serious about someone else, I would have had no problem getting her in my bed or setting up a continuing relationship with her." That was said with a touch of arrogance and a lot of pride in his abilities.

"So why did you leave?" Garrison steered the conversation back to where it had started.

"I don't know," admitted Actor slowly. "It felt as though there was unfinished business. I am forty years old; too young to retire, but too old to spend the rest of my life looking over my shoulder. I started this when you took me out of Alcatraz. I find I would like to finish it with you and the others. The duration and six months. I want that parole. It's a gamble. But then I am a gambler." A smile came to his face. "And I found I was missing working the cons with you, Warden. You are a wonderful partner in that, and I do not usually like working with a partner."

"What about Terry?"

"Ah, Teresa." Actor had been expecting that to pop up. "She has matured into a most excellent con woman. I think she might become as good or better than the Duchess."

Garrison laughed inside. Terry had better be that good. It was Duchess and Actor who taught her the con. Not that he would tell Actor that.

"And what about after the war?" asked the girl's brother. "I can't see her following you setting up cons all over Europe."

Actor shook his head. "No, she could no more follow my lifestyle than I could ensconce myself in that wilderness you live in. Teresa can work the cons with me now because there is a good cause for it. But larceny? No." Now he asked the question that was on his mind. "I am curious. How is Teresa doing working with Carter?"

Garrison knew it wasn't just ego asking that. There was a lot at stake for Actor based on Terry's working relationship with another confidence man. "I don't usually get to observe them," he said. "Chief and Goniff have. They work well together. There haven't been any problems. But both of the guys say there is something missing in them that was present with the two of you. Neither could say what that was."

Actor nodded. "So we are back to what now." He took a sip. "Teresa and Carter can pull off the cons. They have been together for three months now. Far easier for the army to send me back to stir than disrupt things again."

"That is something I am not going to allow to happen without a damn good fight," said Garrison forcefully.

The Italian shook his head. "They are not going to allow you to keep two confidence men, and two confidence men working together, with the exception of you and I, does not work."

Garrison's mouth curved up in a grin. "I have an idea, but I have to do some work on it."

A wide grin came to the confidence man's face. "I thought you might."

They finished their brandies and Actor let himself silently back out of Garrison's bedroom and walked down to his own. As he opened the door to his room, he immediately noted light coming from inside. Continuing in, he shut the door and turned, fixing his guest was a wary look. He had expected Teresa at some point. Obviously it was going to be a long night, and not a happy one.

Teresa was standing beside the bed, still in the clothes she had on during the day. That was a good thing. Actor was not ready to deal with a nightgown clad woman at this point. He said nothing and waited to see what she had to say.

"Let me see the wound," she said quietly.

"Why?" he asked in almost a snarl.

"Because I hurt you. I thought you were healed."

Actor watched her, trying to decide how to play this. "It is of no consequence. I am fine. Leave me alone please."

Terry shook her head. "I can't. I was wrong and I treated you badly, besides hitting you. I'm sorry, Vittorio. I thought you were being Actor. But you came back when you didn't have to. I didn't think about that. All I thought about was how scared I was for you. Let me see the wound and then I'll leave you alone."

Knowing it would do no good to refuse her, Actor unbuttoned his shirt and pulled the tails from his pants. He slipped his left arm out of the sleeve and dropped the shirt down his back. Terry looked at the scar from the entrance wound on the front. There was no exit scar on his back.

"What did it hit?" she asked.

"I was told it collapsed the bottom of my lung," said the con man.

He watched her lay a hand gently over the scar.

"No heat," she said. "Trouble breathing?"

"Not much anymore," said Actor. Despite everything, he found he did not want that hand to leave. Unfortunately, it did.

"Still sore though," said Terry. "Even before I hit you."

"Yes," admitted the Italian. "The bullet clipped a rib. It is what saved me."

Terry held the shirt out so he could slip his arm back in the sleeve.

"Do you have any idea . . .?" she started to say, but stopped.

Giving in to his need, Actor reached his hands up to cup her face and kissed her on the lips. She returned it. Parting, she searched his face.

"Yes, I guess maybe you do," she said softly. "Can you forgive me?"

"Don't I always? I suppose I should have expected it. I do not treat people well. It's what I do."

Terry shook her head. "You're learning. You are gentle when you treat our wounds. And you can be kind. You've been good to me." She paused. "I missed you."

Actor looked at her and felt at odds with himself. It was a hard thing to admit. "I missed you also."

Terry moved forward and stopped. She wanted to hug him, but she had already hurt him enough. He knew what was going through her mind and took hold of her wrists lightly to guide them up around his neck. She moved into him with a small noise. He held her close, but to his right side, and leaned his face against her temple. Her arms crossed behind his neck and she buried her face into the crook of his throat.

With reluctance, Actor pulled away. "Go, before somebody catches you."

Terry nodded, getting one more kiss before heading to the door. She let herself out and carefully shut the door silently behind her. Turning toward her room, she froze.

Garrison was leaning against the door frame of his open bedroom door, arms crossed. He had figured she would be waiting in the Italian's room. Craig was not above making his sister pay penance for her temper, so he kept a severe expression on his face. The wide-eyed startled and apprehensive look on her face gave him a tiny bit of satisfaction. He said nothing as she slowly stepped closer.

"Straighten things out with him?" Garrison asked.

Terry nodded.

"Good. Lose the temper. That time with Casino was warranted. With Actor it wasn't."

Terry nodded again.

"Go to bed. I need to get some sleep and I don't want to have to keep an eye on you."

Silent, Terry gave him a wide berth as she walked around him.

Garrison went into his room where he could permit himself a grin of satisfaction. It had taken a long time, but finally he had achieved payback for the chicken in his bathtub months ago. He would let his sister stew for a few days and then remind her. Then again, maybe not. She had been in the wrong with Actor, and his second had not appreciated his earlier interference. No, better to allow Actor to handle the girl.


	12. Chapter 12

The Expendable One

Chapter 12

The next morning, after his run and breakfast, Garrison locked himself in his office and began making phone calls. Terry kept him supplied with coffee. He wasn't sure if she was being sisterly or trying to find out what he was doing. He stopped talking every time she entered his office. Finally, she quit coming in and went upstairs to empty the trash from each of the bedrooms.

It was late morning and Garrison had still not emerged from his office. Carter and Goniff were playing solitaire at the table. Casino was sprawled on the sofa, playing with a combination lock. Chief was at the chess table, studying the last move Garrison had made.

Actor came from the kitchen with a steaming cup of coffee. He took a sip of the hot liquid, set it on the table beside the Cockney and puffed on his pipe, leaning a forearm on the back of the chair in a manner he knew annoyed the man while he watched the pickpocket cheat at cards.

Carter cocked a quizzical look at Actor. The con man sensed a question coming and waited patiently.

"So, did you steal the Monet from the Louvre in '35?"

Actor gave a little smile while the other men grinned and watched to see his response.

"If I had, I most certainly would not admit to it."

Carter nodded. "Never hurts to ask."

"Ask all you wish. But I may not answer."

Reaching down, the Italian moved a card from one column to another. It earned him a dirty look. He grinned as Goniff slapped the card back where he had it before.

The front door opened and Christine entered. She glanced at the men and did a double take at the tall Italian standing at the game table.

"Actor!"

She ran forward.

Actor straightened and held a hand out in caution. "Careful!"

Chris put the brakes on and almost collided with him. "I forgot. Craig said you had been shot when he had to leave you." She smiled widely. "I am so glad you are back."

Actor smiled back at her. He kept his left arm against his chest and held his right one out. She moved in carefully and gave him a hug. This was a welcome he could enjoy. It pleased him the youngest girl was no longer afraid of him.

"You're still hurt?" she asked with concern. "Is Terry taking care of you?"

Casino laughed. "She took care of him all right. She popped him one."

Chris stepped back and looked up at the tall man. "She hit you?" she asked in disbelief.

Actor gave an unconcerned shrug.

"Yes, I hit him," said Terry descending the stairs with a can full of trash. "I thought he deserved it."

"Terry!"

Actor chuckled. "It's all right, Christine. She was just upset."

Chris gave her sister a mock dirty look and smiled up at the tall man giving him another squeeze. "Well, as long as she didn't hurt you."

Terry sent an apologetic look at the con man. "I broke his rib again."

The younger girl leaned back and looked up into twinkling hazel eyes. "Would you like me to hit her for you? I know you are too much of a gentleman to do that."

"No," chuckled Actor. "I think there have been enough fists flying around here for awhile."

Garrison came out for a quick lunch. He seemed lost in his thoughts and probably could not have said what it was he ate.

"Just what are you doing?" asked Terry out of curiosity.

"I've been making a lot of phone calls," said the lieutenant. "Now I'm writing letters of appeal."

"Appealing what?" asked Chris.

"A couple things," replied Garrison vaguely.

Terry glanced at Actor. He seemed unaffected by this, but she could see the wheels turning in that intelligent mind. Somehow she knew he was worried about the outcome of this.

"You – uh – want me to call Uncle?" she asked her brother.

Craig looked up. That avenue was not out of the question, but he would rather do it without pulling in that much rank. "Let's see how this turns out," he said. "And if need be I will call Uncle."

"Warden," objected Actor. "I do not want you to get in trouble for this."

That brought a smile to the officer's face. "Don't worry, Actor. If this works, I won't be in any trouble."

"Hey," said Chief, "we already lost him once. We don't need to be losin' you."

"You won't," said Garrison confidently.

After lunch, the officer again locked himself in the office. A few hours later, he emerged, briefcase in hand and looked at his middle sister.

"I need to borrow your car," he said.

That was a first. Terry eyed him from the game table where she was in a poker game with the three middle men and her sister. The eldest and youngest of the group were taking advantage of the comfortable chairs.

"There something wrong with the Packard?" asked Terry.

"I need speed."

Now they all looked at him. The Warden never sped unless it was an emergency or they were being chased. Terry reached in her trousers pocket and retrieved her keys. She tossed them to Craig.

He nodded and put his cap on and took his Ike jacket off the coat tree. "I won't be back until late. You guys can go to the Fox, if you want."

"If we want," muttered Casino. "Like we would say no?"

Garrison grinned and went out the door, a bounce in his step.

Chris looked across the table at her sister. "He's up to something. Sometimes he worries me."

"You haven't been living with him enough," said Terry. "He worries me more than sometimes."

GGG

Dinner that evening was a hurried affair. The dishes were left to soak. Chris borrowed some of Terry's clothes and the two girls put on dancing shoes. The men dressed nicely in trousers, turtlenecks and jackets. By 2030, they were almost ready to leave. Terry motioned them to wait while she went to the phone and dialed a number.

"Major Schaeffer's residence," came a British female voice.

"Can't you just say 'hello'?" asked Terry.

"I'm sorry, the Major has retired for the night," said the girl going along with the teasing.

"Too bad," said Terry insincerely. "Care to meet us at the Fox?"

"How many are involved?" asked the girl.

"All of us," grinned Terry.

"I believe that can be arranged."

"Meet you there."

"Yes, well, hurry," whispered Meg. "I'll be waiting."

It was a boisterous group that trooped out to the Packard and stopped. There were seven of them to squeeze into the car. Three men in the backseat took up the whole thing. Now there was one girl too many.

"Who's driving?" asked Terry.

"Me," said Chief.

Terry took over. "Chris, you sit in the middle of the front seat. Carter, you get the front too."

That left Casino, Goniff, Actor and Terry.

Goniff grinned at Terry. "So who are you sitting on, Love?"

"Not you," she shot back with a grin of her own. "You're too bony."

"You can sit on me," offered Casino lecherously.

"She can sit on me," said Actor firmly.

Terry glanced up at him. "What about your rib?"

"You will be sitting on my legs, not my rib."

With some grunting and pushing, they managed to all fit in and Chief took off at a faster speed than he normally drove to get there before a fight broke out in the backseat.

Entering the Fox, they saw Meg already there and a couple tables pushed together to accommodate eight of them. Chief and Chris paired up as did Meg and Goniff. Terry found herself between Carter and Actor. Casino was not happy to be on the other side of Carter.

Kit brought two pitchers of ale on a tray of glasses. "You guys want more ale, get it yourself."

"No problem," said Terry with a grin.

Drinks were poured and the group settled down. That did not last long. Glenn Miller came on the jukebox. Casino got up and stood behind Terry, hands on her shoulders.

"Wanna dance?" he asked.

"Sure."

The others watched the safecracker and Terry. One thing they knew was the two of them could Swing. The song ended and a slow one came on. Chris yanked on Chief to get him on the dance floor. Goniff grabbed Meg's hand and led her out there too. Casino stayed with Terry.

Carter grinned and pushed his chair back. Actor found himself sitting alone at the table while the young con man walked up to tap Casino on the shoulder. Terry smoothly transitioned to her new dance partner, leaving the safe cracker standing in the middle of the floor.

Actor watched Terry and Carter dancing. He was joined by Casino. The cracksman lounged in his chair and took a long drink of ale.

"Pushy," he said, eyes on Carter.

"Not for long," intoned the Italian.

Casino grinned as Actor rose and moved between couples. His grin widened when Actor tapped Carter on the back and lifted Terry's hand from his shoulder. The girl made no objection and moved into the Italian's embrace. Now Carter was standing alone. With a shrug, the blond man weaved his way back to the table.

"Staking your territory, Actor?" said Terry softly in amusement.

That was exactly what he was doing. "I think it is time to practice our dancing," he said. "Don't you agree, _cara_?"

"You can't tell me you didn't practice with the Duchess," she said with a twinkle in her eyes.

"Not once," Actor assured her. "Bernardo would have had my head if I had."

"Or some other part of you," teased the girl. "I find it amazing you still have all your parts."

"Really, Teresa," he objected.

She moved closer and they danced as though they had never been apart.

"I'd rather be in London," murmured Terry.

"Delightful idea," murmured Actor back, "but not an option I am afraid."

A thought crossed the girl's mind, besides the contentment she was feeling in being held by the Italian.

"You best not make use of the key to my flat," she said. "Chris is living there. She lost her flat to a German bomb."

That was another thing that had not changed for the good, thought Actor. The corner of him mouth turned up. "Did she like the sheets?"

Terry looked up at him with a grin of her own. "Not at first. Now she loves them."

Actor chuckled and held her closer.

It was after midnight when they returned to the mansion after dropping Chris off at Terry's flat. It made the drive back a little less crowded. The MG was back in the car park. When they entered the house, the door to Garrison's office was closed, but there was no light. They trooped upstairs and went to their rooms. Garrison's bedroom door was closed too. They would just have to wait until morning to find out what the lieutenant had been doing.

GGG

At breakfast, Garrison was being tight-lipped again. He refused to answer any of the questions put to him about his trip to London. Again, he locked himself into his office. At a little before ten, he opened the door and called the two confidence men and Terry into his office.

The three took seats at the table, Terry in between the two men. Garrison took his seat at the head of the table. The seating arrangement of the other three was not lost on him. Actor had been right when he said two confidence men working together would not work. Though there was nothing overt about Carter, Garrison had a strong sense there was competition between him and Actor. Garrison took a deep breath, let it out and leaned back in his chair, looking at his two confidence men and avoiding his sister.

"I might be able to secure that parole for Actor, under the circumstances." He shook his head. "But the army would be more inclined to throw one or the other of you back in stir."

Both cons silently watched the officer. Carter waited to see what came next. Actor recognized Garrison had his plan at least partially worked out.

"Randy has been trying to find a replacement for . . . what was his name?"

"Fox," said Terry with distaste.

Both of the con men stared in shock at the girl. Neither had ever bothered to find out the name of the man Teresa had been partnered with.

Actor was uncharacteristically vocal. "All this time you have been working with . . ."

"The Fox?" exclaimed Carter.

"You two know him?" asked Garrison, surprised at the spontaneous reaction of both men.

"By reputation only," said Actor. "And that was bad."

"I met him once. Braggart. Full of himself. Total idiot," said Carter. "How did anyone let him out of stir?"

Terry eyed her brother with a patent smile. "Now you know."

Brushing that aside for now, Garrison turned speculative eyes on Carter. "Think you can work with another team?"

"As opposed to going back to stir? Of course," said the blond man. It didn't surprise him that he would be the one leaving the group. He had to admit the older man had more experience and polish than he did, though it did not make the decision any more palatable.

Garrison now focused on his sister. "You'll still be going in with Randy on occasion. Can you work with Carter that way?"

The girl made a face, "Craig, I've been working with Carter for three months now. I don't have a problem with it, if he doesn't."

"No problem," said Carter with a grin. At least he would get to keep the girl part of the time.

Garrison turned to Actor. "You would have to work with Terry again.

"I suppose I can manage," said the Italian with a dramatic sigh.

Terry cocked an eyebrow at him. He squeezed her knee under the table. Actor felt a touch of relief. Though he had been fairly certain his place on the team was secure, there was that wild card of what the Brass thought that could have changed the game.

"Hey, Warden!" Chief's voice came through the door.

"I know," said Garrison. "Show him in."

A couple minutes later, the door opened and a blond first lieutenant walked in, leaning lightly on a wooden cane. He nodded to Craig and walked behind the other three. His paused behind the girl and rested a hand on her shoulder. Her hand came up to cover his and she smiled up at him.

"Okay?" she asked quietly.

"Getting there," he said.

Garrison stood and pulled the chair next to him out. "Lt. Randy Johnson." He started the introductions. Looking at the blond man seated next to him, he said, "This is Carter." Craig nodded toward the older man. "This is Actor."

Randy stopped and glanced at Carter, but his attention went to the dark man at the end of the table. He had met Actor one time before. The man had an aristocratic air that Randy could never hope to achieve and his reputation had preceded him. Randy would have killed to have him on the team, but would have had a hard time not feeling intimidated by the man. His other cons would have been intimidated by Actor.

"No."

The single word was uttered with firm amusement by the woman. Lt. Johnson took a seat and shook his head. No, the younger blond man would be a better fit.

"Would you be interested in joining my team?" Randy asked Carter.

There was a nod. "As long as the stakes are the same."

Garrison confirmed that. "Duration and six months and if you survive, a parole."

Carter studied the other officer. "You okay working with me?" He realized the first choice would have been the Italian.

Johnson nodded. "I think you would be a good fit with my team." He looked at Terry. "I trust you. What's your opinion?"

Terry looked between the men on either side of her. "I think your guys would work better with Carter." She looked apologetically at the man in question. "I'm sorry, but our guys worked with Actor for what, a year and a half now? They're kind of set in their ways. And I'm sorry to speak ill of the dead, but Randy's men would welcome you after what they have had to work with."

Garrison had to have a verbal responses for his report. "So Terry, you're amenable to keeping Actor and letting Lt. Johnson have Carter."

"Sure," said the girl with a smile. "Win-win. I get to keep both of them. No problem."

Now Garrison looked at Actor. "What is your choice, Actor?"

"I have no objections to picking up with your team as before."

Garrison nodded. He looked at Lt. Johnson. "Conference call to the Brass?"

"Let's do it," said Randy with a grin.

"Okay you three. Out. Let us get to work."

The two con men and the girl got up and went out.

"What's goin' on?" asked Chief.

"They're working things out with G-2," said Terry. "Carter goes with Randy and we get stuck with Actor."

Ignoring that, Actor looked at Carter. "You do realize we are not in the clear yet? The Brass could reject any or all of this."

"I know," said Carter with a calmness he did not feel.

They took seats at the game table and waited.

GGG

An hour and half passed before the door to Garrison's office opened and the two officers emerged. All eyes focused on them.

Garrison wore his military expression. "The Brass accepted it. It's a matter of the paperwork and signatures now."

Open looks of relief crossed the faces of the two con men while pleased responses came from the other men.

"It will probably take another week before this is done," added Johnson. Randy turned and shook hands with Craig. "Thanks for the idea and solving my problem."

Garrison grinned. Randy did not know how much a relief it was to him also.

Randy started toward the door, to be intercepted by Terry.

"How long before you're released back to duty?" she asked.

"Doctor thinks another two weeks."

Terry smiled. "You take care of yourself. If you need anything, holler at me."

"I will."

Terry moved in and gave him a careful hug which he returned.

Casino looked at Actor. "You're screwed, Babe," he said.

Everyone looked at the safecracker in confusion.

Actor finally had to ask. "And why is that, Casino?"

Casino grinned. "He's wounded and she didn't clock him."


End file.
